Elves' Child
by Healer Pomfrey
Summary: What if house-elves took Harry away from the Dursleys' doorstep to raise him in the magical world? Completely AU, partly OOC, partly childfic. sick!Harry. Main characters: Harry, Severus, Poppy and my usual OC elves that you can find on my author's page.
1. Prologue

**Elves' Child by Healer Pomfrey**

_What if someone took Harry away from the Dursleys' doorstep? Completely AU, partly OOC, partly childfic. I'm not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes or help me to correct them._

_All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._

**

* * *

1 – Prologue**

Unbeknownst to Professors McGonagall, Dumbledore and Hagrid, four large eyes were watching their every move as they said goodbye to the small Harry in front of the Dursleys' door.

"Albus, are you sure you want to leave the child here? Wouldn't it be better to raise him at Hogwarts? His relatives are the worst kind of Muggles I've ever seen, and I remember well what Lily told me about her sister. She hated the magical world even as a teenager. How will she be able and willing to raise Harry?" Professor McGonagall queried, eyeing the small boy in obvious concern.

Unfortunately, the Headmaster didn't listen to his Deputy and left the one-year old on the Dursleys' doorstep.

"We can't leave the baby here," Cicero whispered to Malcolm as soon as the professors had left, "let's take him with us."

"Are you sure, Cicero? Will we be able to keep him safe?"

"Yes. You heard their conversation. Apart from that, he will be cold. It's already November, and he is only wrapped in a thin blanket."

Suddenly, Harry stirred and let out a series of small sneezes, followed by a small wail.

"Oh right," Cicero said firmly, "he is already getting ill."

"Okay. I'm sure the others will help us," Malcolm finally agreed and gently scooped Harry into his arms.

Ten seconds later, Privet Drive was back to being as normal as it could be.

_

* * *

tbc.._


	2. The Elves' Quarters

**Elves' Child**

_Thank you so much for your kind comments, which made me believe I that owe you a 'real' chapter. _

_The five OC Hogwarts house-elves in this story are all elves that have appeared in my other stories before, and you can find them all on my author's page. If you meet them here for the first time, I'm sure you'll get soon used to them. Please note that in this story, the teachers' personal house-elves speak proper English in contrary to the other Hogwarts-elves. Enjoy! _

**2 – ****The Elves' Quarters**

The two elves popped straight into the elves' quarters at Hogwarts, gently placing little Harry on a sofa. Instantly, they were surrounded by all the house-elves that weren't just busy cleaning the castle or doing the washing for the Hogwarts students and teachers.

"You broughts him here?" Barney, the Head house-elf, queried. "Are you sure not to be acting against your masters' wishes?"

"Barney," Cicero sneered. "Don't tell me you expected anything else. It was not by chance that you asked us, the only elves, who are not bond to the Headmaster, to go and observe what happened."

Barney chuckled. Cicero was bond to Severus Snape, Malcolm was Minerva McGonagall's personal house-elf, and Misty was bond to Poppy Pomfrey. "Exactly, and seeing that none of us cans acts against Master Albus' wishes, I needs all three of yous, Cicero, Malcolm and Misty, to become the child's guardian."

"All right," Malcolm spoke up shyly, turning his eyes to Misty, who was just leaning over the child.

"He caught a slight cold and he has a bad head injury," Misty informed them. Apart from being Madam Pomfrey's personal house-elf she was the Healer of the elves and possessed her own, strong Healing magic. "I will take him with me into my room for the night." As the elves' Healer, Misty had her own room that was connected to a small infirmary, where she used to treat the sick elves.

"Very well, Misty," Barney agreed and decided, "If you allows me to interfere, Misty should be responsible for raising the child and for his health, Malcolm for his education and Cicero for his safety within and outside of Hogwarts."

Everyone agreed, and the elves went to bed to get some sleep, before many of them would have to get up in time to turn on the fireplaces in the common rooms and the teachers' quarters as well as prepare breakfast for everyone.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

When Harry woke up in the morning, he didn't feel well. He didn't know why but he felt sore and cold, and it was difficult to breathe. '_Mummy_,' he remembered as a small sneeze escaped from his hurting face, making him feel even more uncomfortable, '_Mummy will make me all better_.' He scrambled up into a standing position, holding on to the rails of his cot. "Mummy!" he shouted, noticing irritably that it sounded strangely. "Mummy!" he tried again and began to cry, hoping to make his mummy hurry to his side.

"Oh my you sound very hoarse, sweetie," a soft voice suddenly penetrated his foggy mind, and he saw a strange creature standing in front of his cot.

Harry's first reaction was to cry even more, but he found out that it hurt, and the strange creature gently scooped him up, speaking to him in a very gentle voice.

"Good morning, Harry. I am Misty. Your mummy cannot be here now, but I will make you feel better. Okay?"

"Kay," Harry whispered, eyeing Misty anxiously.

Misty quickly checked on the child, frowning because his condition was worse than she had assumed during the night. He had a respiratory infection accompanied by a high fever. "Oh sweetie, you're very ill. You must feel horrible."

"Ye," Harry replied, tugging his ear, while Misty waved her hand over his body.

"I'm going to keep you in bed today," Misty decided and gently pressed two fingers against his burning forehead, letting a huge amount of Healing magic flow into his body, noticing from the corner of her eyes that the child seemingly relaxed. "Is that a little better?" she asked softly.

"Ye, fanku," Harry whispered, unconsciously leaning against the elf's cool touch.

"That's good. Now go to sleep for a few hours; I'll come and check on you every now and then," Misty told Harry as she laid him down on a cot in the infirmary room, where three elves were suffering from the flu.

"Nooo," Harry wailed, missing the elf's body contact and feeling too miserable to be comfortable on his own. "Up," he demanded weakly, raising both arms to the nice elf.

Afraid that he would make himself so upset that his fever could reach dangerous heights, Misty picked him up, sighing. She carried him around for a while, causing Harry to fall in a blissful sleep. However, as soon as Misty put him down on the cot, Harry woke up and began to cry immediately. Knowing that her other patients needed her as well and that Poppy would certainly call for her soon, Misty gave up after the fifth attempt and conjured a baby sling in which she wrapped Harry against her own body to carry him while she was working.

'_Feels good_,' Harry noticed and drifted off to sleep instantly, imagining that it was his mummy who carried him.

HP

While Harry was sick, Misty carried him around most of the day. Whenever she turned invisible, Harry would automatically become invisible due to the body contact, and if Poppy called for her, she merely turned Harry invisible, which was also possible through the body contact.

"Misty, are you all right? You're moving as if you were in pain," Poppy asked her once, causing the small elf to straighten up immediately.

"Oh no, I'm sorry. I must have moved my back strangely, it hurts a bit, but I'm fine," Misty hurried to assure the Mediwitch.

When Harry felt better, Misty took him to the playroom and introduced him to the elf children. "This is Harry, and he is one of us. Please be kind and play with him," she instructed the kids, who immediately pulled Harry off to the slide they had just been playing at.

Harry looked around in amazement. Never before had he seen so many children at once, although they looked all like Misty and not like his Mummy and all the other people he had known so far. '_But they're nice_,' he thought and happily played with the others until Misty came by to collect him later on.

Harry soon became friends with the other children and loved playing with them. He also loved Misty and very slowly became used to the fact that she was always there for him instead of his Mummy.

It was shortly after Harry's third birthday that all the elf children of his age were assembled in a different room, and Harry curiously looked around. No one had told him to come, but realising that all of his closest friends had been asked to gather here, he had, of course, followed them.

An adult elf stepped into their middle. "Good morning, I am Twinkle, and I'm going to teach you elves' knowledge. You're already three years old, and it's time for you to learn about Hogwarts and its magic. Next year, you will learn how to communicate with the castle and how to move around without being noticed by the wizards."

The children listened in awe, knowing that Twinkle was the Headmaster's personal house-elf. "Harry," Twinkle suddenly addressed him, "do you want to take this class? You don't have to attend if you don't want to."

"I want," Harry replied sadly. He didn't like being singled out just because he looked differently, a fact that he had only found out by chance when Misty had taken him with her into Poppy's private quarters to look after her when she was ill. She had a huge mirror in her bedroom, and looking into the mirror Harry had realised that he didn't look like his family, the elves, but like the wizards and witches who lived in the main part of the castle.

"Very well then, you may. I'll inform your guardians," Twinkle said gently, causing a huge smile to appear on the small boy's face.

Harry enjoyed his classes immensely. They had much fun learning about the castle's magic. In the morning, Twinkle used to give them explanations about certain aspects of magic that were easy to understand for the three-year-olds, and in the afternoon, he used a so-called 'Roundkey' to pop the whole group of them together to a place within the castle, where they could observe what they had learned in the morning. Afterwards, he took them out onto the grounds, where they could entertain themselves or watch the students play Quidditch, invisible to the humans of course.

Their group held ten elf children apart from Harry, and Harry was good friends with everyone, although he had two best friends among the group, Nina and Tony. Tony even managed to get the bed right next to him in the huge elves' boys' dormitory, where all the elf children from three years onwards slept.

The elf children had no classes on the weekends and during the school holidays, and Misty, Cicero and Malcolm used these times to take Harry with them and let him observe them work, instructing the boy to remain invisible at all times.

One day, however, Misty helped Poppy prepare her potions shelf for the upcoming school year. Harry, who had just become four, eagerly wanted to help his favourite elf, who was like a mummy for him. He carefully took the phials out of a box and placed them onto the far end of the shelf, where Poppy wouldn't notice the phials moving. Suddenly however, he became distracted by Poppy's and Misty's conversation and dropped a phial that fell onto the near-by table and broke, causing a lime green liquid to spread all over him.

The horrified cry Harry let out in panic alerted Poppy to his presence. "Misty, did you bring another elf? Someone just dropped a phial. Please tell him or her to make himself visible, so we can make sure that the potion didn't hit him or possible got into his blood stream through cuts induced by small pieces of glass."

_

* * *

tbc... (If you're interested?!)  
_

_I'm not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes or help me to correct them._

_All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	3. Learning Elves' Knowledge

**3 – ****Learning Elves' Knowledge**

Misty let out a small groan, seeing that Harry hadn't only been hit by the potion that wouldn't have done any harm to his skin, but that he had suffered several cuts by small pieces of glass, so the liquid had been able to penetrate into his blood.

"Mistress Poppy, can you promise not to tell anyone?" she queried and, seeing Poppy nod, ordered Harry to make himself visible.

Harry threw Misty a terrified look. Ever since he could remember, he had been told to stay invisible in front of the humans at any cost. However, he was very sore and frightened and automatically followed his guardian's order, allowing Mistress Poppy to see him.

Poppy let out a huge gasp seeing a human child in front of her and not a small elf as expected, but she instantly turned into Healer's mode as she took in his injuries, waving her wand over the child without asking any questions. Misty waved her hand as well and unobtrusively spelled a huge amount of Healing magic into the boy's system, causing Harry to sigh in relief as the pain receded some. "Thank you, Mummy," he whispered, causing Misty to smile and Poppy to throw them a curious look.

"Misty, I'm at a loss," Poppy finally spoke up. "That was the Grindylow potion, which is only safe for outer use and not for drinking let alone applying straight to the bloodstream. I don't know how far-reaching the consequences can be. Could you perhaps pop to St. Mungo's and enquire about the matter? You're faster than me, and I don't think we should lose any more time."

"Yes, of course, Mistress Poppy. However, we need to keep Harry out of sight. No one must see him," Misty replied excitedly. "Is it all right if he makes him invisible again?"

"No, I want to be able to see him. I'll take him into my private quarters," Poppy decided and gently scooped Harry onto her arms, causing Misty to sigh in relief.

"It's all right, sweetie, you're safe with Mistress Poppy."

"Ye," Harry replied miserably, nestling deep into Poppy's robes.

Poppy tried in vain to make Harry lie on the bed in her guest room; the child only cuddled closer to her and wouldn't allow her to put him down.

'_Harry?_' Poppy mused, noticing the boy's skin getting hot as he obviously developed a fever. '_He can't be Harry Potter now, can he? And why is he living with the elves? The child called Misty 'Mummy.' This is very strange_,' she thought as she gently wiped the boy's face, only by chance noticing a faint scar on his forehead. Due to Misty's efforts, it was hardly visible; however, as Poppy was closely examining the boy's skin for possible green spots due to the Grindylow pox, the faint remaining of the former scar didn't go unnoticed by her sharp eyes. Deciding to keep the matter to herself and ask Misty about it later on, she threw her house-elf an expecting look as she popped into the room. For now, the child's health had the highest priority.

Misty eyed Harry in concern, before she began to explain. "They are not one hundred percent sure, but they assume that he might be very susceptible to the Grindylow pox. It's a very dangerous potion if applied internally, and we won't be able to completely remove it from his body. They suspect that he might get the pox in a light form, which means the pox will only spread over his mouth and throat but not on his skin, whenever he is tired, sick, or his condition is otherwise aggravated, but that's all they could tell me."

Poppy let out a long sigh. "That's exactly what I was afraid of," she slowly confirmed. "Misty, you must keep a close eye on the child."

"I will," Misty promised. "I'm not only a Healer's house-elf and the Healer of the elves, but Harry is like a son to me. I raised him since he was a year old," she said soothingly.

"Misty," Poppy asked softly, "would you please explain why Harry Potter, who is supposed to live with his aunt, is growing up at Hogwarts as your son?"

Misty quickly explained how they had rescued Harry when he was a baby, noticing that Poppy's features softened immensely as she was listening.

"You did a very good job raising Harry so far, and I trust you'll be fully able to keep him safe and healthy," Poppy said finally, gently stroking the child's flushed cheeks. "However, now that I know of your secret, I'd feel much better if you let me check on him from time to time."

"I will, Mistress Poppy. I think it might be good for the child to get in direct contact with a human being from time to time. Normally, he attends the elf children's classes though. I only take him with me on the weekends and during the holidays."

"The weekend is fine, Misty, and if you ever need help, please contact me."

"Thank you so much, Mistress Poppy," Misty said gratefully, bowing deeply, before she pulled the Mediwitch into a conversation concerning the potions she intended to give Harry. Finally, the two Healers decided to leave Harry in Poppy's quarters for the moment in order to quarantine him and keep the elves safe from the Grindylow pox.

During the next few days, Harry felt very lousy. However, Poppy and Misty tried their best to make him feel better, and Poppy finally allowed him out of bed just in time for the beginning of the new school year.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

As much as Harry had enjoyed spending the summer holidays playing with his friends and watching his guardians, especially Misty, doing their tasks, he was very happy when classes began again. It was too much fun to learn together with his friends, and their teacher, Twinkle, was very funny and always tried to make their classes interesting.

The four-year-olds learned how to communicate with the castle by pressing their ears against certain spots on the walls that were charmed to remain unnoticed by the humans with the exception of the Headmaster. Harry giggled joyfully when he asked the castle to play ball with him, and the wall in the room they used for their practice grew thicker and thinner in order to kick the bright red ball, which he had received for his birthday, back to him.

"Very well done, Harry," Twinkle commended him and instructed his classmates to follow his example.

However, one day Twinkle began to teach them how to pop themselves through the castle. Harry knew exactly how it was supposed to work, but he just couldn't manage to pop himself. Some of his friends succeeded in popping themselves through the room, but Harry tried and tried and still found himself on the same place. Feeling tired and disappointed, he sat down on the floor and sadly watched the others pop from one end of the room to the other.

"Is awight, Hawwy," Nina suddenly said, pulling him into a hug.

"Harry wills be able to pops as well," Toby agreed, sitting next to his two friends.

"Already tired?" Twinkle asked, causing the three children to jump onto their feet and resume practising in the blink of an eye. "Harry, don't worry, you'll be able to do this as well as the others, and it doesn't matter if it takes a few days. Only try as long as you're not tired," Twinkle told Harry in a soft voice, remembering what Misty had told him about the child's condition, and Harry threw the kind elf a grateful look.

Harry tried a few times more, but by the time he managed to move two metres forward, he all of a sudden felt absolutely exhausted. '_I managed to pop_,' he thought happily as he tiredly curled up on the floor, suddenly feeling very unwell.

"Harry, are you feeling all right?" Twinkle's concerned voice penetrated his ears, causing him to through the teacher a bleary look.

"No. Want my Mummy," he mumbled miserably, unconsciously leaning in the cold touch when Twinkle leaned over to feel his forehead.

Harry had to spend three days in the infirmary of the elves' quarters with a high fever and small green pustules spreading all over his mouth and throat, making his throat very sore. "These pustules are the Grindylow pox, but you're still lucky this time," Misty informed him softly. "If it gets really bad, the pox spread all over your skin as well, and it'll take at least a week of bed rest. From now on, you have to be more careful not to overtire yourself."

"I'll try," Harry promised sincerely, unaware of the fact that his four-year-old mind wasn't even able to notice when his body was beginning to get tired.

However, the adult elves knew, and from that time onwards they always kept a close eye on the small human boy, causing Harry to feel very annoyed by his guardians' and teachers' over protectiveness. Since Twinkle only allowed him a certain number of tries each time to make sure he wouldn't overexert himself, it took him quite a time, before he managed to safely pop himself all over the castle. Fortunately, he wasn't the only one. Some of the elf children had problems as well, since it was difficult, especially as they had to remain invisible when they popped. Harry felt very grateful towards his guardians, who had taught him to make himself visible over a year ago, so he was already proficient at that and could concentrate on popping.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

From the new school year onwards, Twinkle taught the now five-year-old children about elves' history and how to care for the students and teachers in the castle. The children also had a few practical hours a week, during which they followed adult elves through the castle to become accustomed with their work, just like Harry had already been doing on the weekends and during the holidays for two years.

On the first day of the Christmas holidays, when all the elves' children including Harry busied themselves making Christmas presents for their guardians and their teachers, Cicero suddenly approached Harry.

"Harry, Misty is sick, and she wants you to come and see her," Cicero told Harry, who threw his guardian a frightened look.

"Misty is sick?" he asked horrified. "What's wrong? Is it bad?"

"No," Cicero replied gently. "She has the flu, but I asked Master Severus for a potion, and I'm sure she'll be right as rain by tomorrow. Don't worry, Harry."

"Okay," Harry sighed in relief and quietly entered Misty's room.

"Harry, don't come so near to me. I don't want to get you ill as well; I merely wanted to ask you to pop yourself to Mistress Poppy. You know that she always wants to check on you on the weekend, and she'll wonder where we are. So please tell her that I can't pop today because I have a high fever."

"Of course I'll tell her," Harry said worriedly. "Is there anything I can do for you?"

"No, thank you, sweetie," Misty croaked.

Harry quickly popped himself into the bathroom and returned to Misty's side with a wet towel. He carefully bathed her flushed face, noticing that she was burning up. "Get well soon, I love you, Mummy," he mumbled as he lightly pressed a kiss to her hot forehead like Misty had done to him often before.

"I love you too, my son," Misty replied sleepily and once more told him to go and better keep away from her.

Knowing that he still hadn't managed to pop himself completely soundlessly, Harry didn't pop himself straight into the hospital wing, but concentrated on the hall in front of the hospital wing when he popped. Unfortunately, Peeves was playing in exactly that corridor with a self-refilling water pistol, and although he couldn't see Harry, he heard him pop in and began to shoot into his direction, until Harry was soaking wet and cold and couldn't manage to keep himself invisible anymore.

"Hah! A little boy!" Peeves screeched, causing Harry to panic.

_

* * *

tbc..._

_Thank you so much for your kind reviews. I hope you liked the chapter._

_I'm not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes or help me to correct them._

_All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	4. More Problems Popping around

**4 – More Problems Popping around**

Not only soaking wet but also shivering from the cold, Harry quickly popped himself away, straight into Poppy's private quarters, from where he hesitantly emerged into her office.

"Oh Harry! You gave me quite a fright," Poppy said gently, throwing him a disbelieving look as she took in his appearance. "What happened to you?" she queried, hurriedly casting a drying charm on the child, before she sat down and gently pulled him up onto her lap.

The five-year-old threw her a grateful smile and explained what Peeves had done to him. Malcolm had long ago warned him about Peeves, so Harry was sure who the strange creature was, but he was still shocked about what had happened.

"Why did you come here on your own anyway?" Poppy asked gently, observing the boy in concern as he fiercely rubbed his forehead.

"Oh right, I nearly forgot to tell you. Misty is sick. She told me to visit you and tell you that she can't come today. She is very hot."

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that she is ill, sweetie. Does she need any potions?"

"No, Cicero asked Master Professor Snape for potions," Harry replied, tiredly resting his achy head on Poppy's shoulder. '_What did I do wrong now_?' he mused, '_I don't feel good_.'

"Harry, are you feeling all right?" Poppy whispered, feeling through her robes that Harry's face seemed to be very warm.

"Not so good," Harry replied sadly, causing the Mediwitch to pull her wand.

"You seem to have caught the flu from Misty," Poppy sighed. "Harry, I want you to rest in my guest room for the moment. You're in no condition to pop yourself back home."

Feeling too bad to protest, Harry allowed himself to be settled into the bed in the guest room and obediently drank the potions Poppy made him take. "Mummy will be worried," he croaked tiredly as he slowly drifted off into a potions induced Healing sleep.

"I'll take care of that," Poppy replied and called Cicero, whom she knew well because he often brought her the batches Severus had just brewed for her.

"Yes, Mistress Poppy?" Cicero popped up next to her, eyeing the sleeping Harry in concern. "Did Harry catch the flu from Misty?" he queried.

"Yes," Poppy sighed. "Could you please inform Misty? Considering that she is ill and won't be able to look after him, I'm going to keep him here."

"Very well, thank you so much, Mistress Poppy," Cicero replied and softly brushed a kiss on Harry's burning forehead, before he excused himself and popped away.

Poppy took a seat on the edge of the bed and gently bathed the boy's flushed face with a cool cloth when she heard a loud pop behind herself.

"I'm sorry, Mistress Poppy," Misty apologized as she made herself visible, causing Poppy to take in the elf's sickly appearance in concern. Dark rings were surrounding her large glassy eyes, and her cheeks held an unusual dark red colour.

"Misty," Poppy said softly, "you don't have to be sorry for anything. You seem to be very ill though, and I want you to lie down here next to Harry, so I can look after both of you."

"Yes, Mistress Poppy," Misty said obediently, "but I don't want Harry and me to be a burden."

"Nonsense, Misty, you're not a burden, and this is an order," she instructed the elf firmly.

Misty slipped into the bed next to Harry, who instantly cuddled close to her, visibly relaxing.

"He can sense you, even if he is fast asleep," Poppy said, smiling, and they both observed how a small smile began to play on the boy's lips.

During the next few days, Poppy nursed Misty and Harry back to health and only released them when she was sure they were completely fine. Before Misty could pop them back to the elves' quarters, Poppy held Harry back. "Harry, do the elves have Christmas as well?"

"Yes, we have a huge Christmas tree in the assembly room, and Father Christmas brings presents," Harry beamed, glad that he was back to health right in time for the big event.

Poppy handed him a small present. "Here, sweetie; I have a present for you as well. You may put it under the tree and open it on Christmas morning."

Harry eyed the present with excitement and giggled. It was wrapped in green paper with small blue dragons that were roaring from time to time. "Thank you so much, Mistress Poppy," he said, smiling.

"Harry, don't call me Mistress. Just say Poppy or Aunt Poppy please," Poppy instructed him gently, imagining her colleagues' expressions if they heard a first-year Harry address her as if he were a house-elf.

"All right, Aunt Poppy," Harry cheered and leaned into Misty's embrace as she popped them away.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

Harry received several toys for Christmas just like his friends, especially Lego blocks, which he liked a lot. However, his favourite present was the small book, '_The Tales of Beedle the Bard_,' which he had received from Poppy. Misty had to read a chapter for him every night, and Harry couldn't get enough of it, although he soon knew the stories by heart. During the following weeks, he pestered Malcolm to teach him how to read, and the elf was happy to instruct the eager boy, who was soon able to read the book to his friends, who all loved the short stories.

Twinkle taught the children to read and write as well as easy Maths from the beginning of the next school year onwards. The six-year-olds also learned to help with the elves' work. Every child had two adult elves that took the children with them all over the castle to teach them how to do their usual work, and the children slowly learned how to help their teachers. Every week, the children were assigned other elves, so they could experience the different kinds of work an adult elf at Hogwarts had to do.

Because of his still weak health condition, Harry always had to remain with his three guardians, Misty, Malcolm and Cicero. Normally, he joined Misty on Monday and Wednesday, Cicero on Tuesday and Thursday and Malcolm on Friday. During the weekends, the one of the three elves, who was the busiest, used to take him, and Harry learned quickly to help his guardians with their work.

One night, after hearing his friends talk about the tasks they had helped with during the day, a crying Harry found his way to the elves' infirmary, where Misty was just checking on her patients. Harry waited until she had administered a few potions, before he ran over to her. "The others learn so much I don't know anything about," he sobbed. "Will I be a bad elf when I'm big?"

"Oh, my poor sweetie," Misty cooed, pulling the child onto her arm to take him into her room, where she settled him down on her lap. "Harry, when you're eleven, you're going to attend school here as a student. You're not going to work as a house-elf. Therefore, for you it's much better to learn things like Healing and potions brewing than anything else. That's why you're always with Cicero, Malcolm and me. It's not only because of your health problems," she explained gently. "Now, stop crying, Harry. You don't want to get the achy pox again now, do you?"

"No," Harry said terrified, anxiously letting his tongue wander around his mouth to feel if they were any of the small things, relaxing when he couldn't find any. "Okay, thank you, Mummy," he mumbled tiredly, feeling very much reassured, especially when Misty took him by the hand and brought him back to his bed in the dormitory.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

The practical instructions as well as the English language classes and Math classes continued into the next school year. However, the now seven-year-olds were also taught to pop themselves out of the castle and even over larger distances to prepare them for occasions, in which they would have to run errands for the teachers.

In the evening before their first practice, the children went to bed very excitedly. They talked for a long while about the possibilities they had once being able to pop themselves out of Hogwarts. '_It sounds like a lot of fun_,' Harry mused in excitement as he slowly drifted off to sleep.

However, a few hours later, he woke up with a sore throat and a terrible headache. '_Oh no, I'm getting sick again_,' he thought in annoyance, not recalling to have done anything strenuous during the last few days. Anxiously using his tongue to feel for pox in his mouth, he noticed there weren't any and decided that he probably had just caught a cold. In spite of feeling quite awful, he relaxed and resolved to hide his problems from Misty, not willing to miss the fun of popping himself out of the castle for the first time he could remember.

'_If you told Misty, she'd give you a Pepperup potion, and you'd feel much better_,' a small voice at the back of his head spoke up as he dragged himself to the classroom after efficiently avoiding his guardians at breakfast. '_But she'd keep me in bed nonetheless, and I don't want to miss today's class_,' he replied to the annoying little voice, taking a seat at the back of the classroom.

"Today, we'll make a trip to Hogsmeade," Twinkle announced and brought the group out onto the grounds with a Roundkey. "Now, from here you'll pop yourselves down to the Hogwarts gates," the Headmaster's personal elf instructed the children. "You can see the gates from here."

The small elves nodded and popped themselves down the road. Harry sighed in relief as he managed to arrive next to his friends just behind the gate.

"You all did that very well," Twinkle commended them gently and proceeded to lead them through the main street of the small town, quietly informing them, which were the most important and frequently used shops and where they were situated, as they walked along the street, invisible to the wizards and witches who were doing their shopping.

Harry felt worse by the minute. He was shivering violently, and a white mist began to surround him as he tried to keep up with his classmates' pace. When they walked by The Three Broomsticks he still tried to listen to Twinkle's explanations, but when the elf showed them Honeydukes, instructing him to keep the place in mind because the Headmaster was likely to send them here for lemon drops, he slowly tuned the teacher's voice out.

"Now, this is Flourish and Blotts, the bookshop. Pop yourselves back now. Those, who think they're able to pop down to the castle, are free to pop themselves back to the entrance doors. All the others pop to the gates," Twinkle instructed them, and the small elves popped away.

Feeling utter relief at the prospect of going home, Harry told his foggy mind to pop back to the entrance door. He popped, only to notice the world turn around swiftly and become completely black.

Unbeknownst to Harry and the elves' group, he only managed to pop a few metres, before he fell unconscious, turning visible as his magic failed. Mere seconds later, a family passed by, discovering the unconscious child lying on the street.

"Look Arthur, a child. He's unconscious and seems to be all on his own!" Molly Weasley said horrified, causing her husband and her two younger children to curiously look at the boy. She stepped over to the child and gently laid a hand on the boy's forehead, letting out a large gasp. "He is burning up. Arthur, take Ron and Ginny, and I'll apparate the boy to St. Mungo's."

"No, Mummy stay with us," her own boy protested vehemently, trying to cling to her robes.

"I'm sorry, Ronnie, but I'll be back soon," Molly promised as she carefully cradled the unknown child onto her arms and apparated away.

_

* * *

tbc..._

_A Roundkey is an elves' group Portkey like I explained earlier in the story – just in case it was unclear._

_Thank you so much for your kind reviews. I hope you liked the chapter._

_I'm not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes or help me to correct them._

_All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	5. Trouble Brewing

**5 – ****Trouble Brewing**

When Harry's mind slowly returned to consciousness, he found himself in a very small room. From the smell, he knew immediately that he was in the infirmary. '_No, there is no such a small room. I must be in Aunt Poppy's hospital wing_,' he realised, noticing that he felt a little better.

However, when a few minutes later two unknown Mediwitches entered the room, he began to panic. "Where am I?" he croaked, horrified.

"You're at St. Mungo's, little one. Can you tell me your name, so we can contact your guardians?"

'_St. Mungo's is the wizarding hospital_.' Harry knew he had heard Poppy mentioning as much. '_What shall I tell them?_' he mused. '_They won't believe that my guardians are elves. I can't tell them the truth._' He slowly shook his head.

The Mediwitch, who had been speaking to him, sighed, while the other one checked the medical devices on the night table that were magically connected to his arm. "You are very ill with tonsillitis and the Grindylow pox at the same time. We'll have to keep you here for at least a week. Don't you want your family to come and see you?"

'_Should I try to pop myself back to Hogwarts_?' Harry pondered, but dismissed the thought immediately as he got a glimpse at his wrist band that constantly displayed his temperature. Only a few weeks ago, Poppy and Misty had taught him about people's temperatures, so he knew that his fever was very high. '_No, with such a fever I won't be able to pop so far_,' he realised, trying to make his foggy mind come up with a solution. "Can you call Aunt Poppy please?" he finally croaked, letting out a few harsh coughs.

"Aunt Poppy? Does she have a family name as well?"

"Aunt Poppy from Hogwarts," Harry whispered, throwing the Mediwitches an anxious look.

"Poppy Pomfrey?" the two witches queried in simultaneous surprise. "I'll go and call her," one of them said and hurried away.

A few minutes later, Poppy bustled into the room, sighing in relief as she saw Harry. "Thank God you're here, sweetie. Everyone has been searching for you since yesterday." She then turned to her colleagues. "I'm going to take the child with me. He belongs to us." Seeing the two Mediwitches nod their consents, she brought his hand to the ring she wore on her left hand, hurriedly speaking the password to activate her emergency Portkey.

"Thank you," Harry whispered as Poppy lowered him onto her guest bed and gently tucked him in, before she called Misty and proceeded to wave her wand over Harry.

"Harry, it was the right thing to have them call your Aunt Poppy," Misty said softly as she pulled the child into a light embrace. "I'm sure they only let you go because they know her so well."

"Definitely," Poppy agreed, smiling at the sight of Misty and Harry cuddling.

During the following week, Harry felt worse than he had ever felt before. The Grindylow pox were so bad this time that they spread all over his arms and legs, while his throat was extremely sore due to his infected and swollen tonsils and the small pox all over his mouth and throat. His fever remained dangerously high, and he only vaguely registered Poppy's and Misty's faces at his side when he woke up from fever induced nightmares.

_Harry was in Master Severus' private lab, standing between the professor and his guardian, helping Cicero prepare ingredients. Somehow, on that day Harry had a slight cold and wasn't feeling well. Nevertheless, he tried feverishly to cut the frogs' liver exactly as Master Severus wanted it; however, he unconsciously lowered the magic he used to keep himself invisible and unheard. Suddenly, a huge sneeze escaped his lips, unfortunately straight in the direction of one of the professor's potion__s, causing the lime green liquid in the cauldron to let out an angry hiss and boil up dangerously._

"_Your little helper is an absolute dunderhead," Snape hissed angrily, banishing the exploding potion with a flick of his wand. "I don't want him in my personal lab anymore."_

"_Oh no," Harry groaned, unaware of the fact that the professor could hear him, although he was still invisible. "I love to help Master Severus, and I'll be so careful the next time," he told Cicero, throwing his guardian a help-searching look._

"_You may clean the cauldrons," Snape said angrily, pointing to a huge number of dirty cauldrons that were piled on the sink._

_Harry sadly turned to the cauldrons. 'Well, at least he didn't ban me completely,' he mused, relieved. Without a special reason he had taken a huge liking to the tall professor, whom he admired greatly for his ability to accurately brew the most difficult potions that made all the sick people and elves become healthy again._

_Suddenly, Harry felt the cauldrons collapse on his shoulder, feeling surprised that the impact didn't hurt but merely shook his shoulder._

"Wake up, sweetie," Misty's voice suddenly penetrated his foggy mind, causing him to abruptly turn back to consciousness. "Did you have a bad dream?" she asked in concern as she gently wiped a few tears off his flushed cheeks.

"Yes," Harry replied and told her about his nightmare, glad that Misty climbed into bed with him and cuddled him close until he drifted back to sleep again.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

From the beginning of the next school year onwards, the small elves that had turned eight years in the meantime, had to begin to work on their own. In contrary to his friends, however, Harry didn't have to do elves' work. Instead, Misty and Cicero took turns taking Harry with them, giving him lessons in Healing and Potions all morning. In the afternoon, they had still classes with Twinkle about Charms, Spells, Transfiguration and Arithmancy. In the evening, the children neither had chores nor homework to do, so they could spend the time between dinner and curfew together playing or talking.

Harry enjoyed their classes a lot, but he also loved his lessons with Misty and Poppy as well as with Cicero. Apart from Poppy, with whom he felt very comfortable, since the witch knew him well, he also became used to Severus, although the Potions Master had no idea about his presence in the Potions classroom, his quarters or his personal lab.

Unbeknownst to Cicero, Harry loved the potions brewing very much and adored the Potions Master so greatly that he spent every free minute popping himself alone into Snape's lab to silently watch the professor brew. By the end of the school year, he knew many of the potions that were most frequently used in the hospital wing by heart. '_I'd love to try brewing something, but I'll have to wait another two years until I'll be able to attend Hogwarts as a student_,' he mused, feeling very excited at the thought.

One day, Harry, who was very observing, noticed that Snape was obviously sick. The professor's face was even paler than normal, he had dark rings under his eyes, and pearls of sweat threatened to drip down from his forehead. '_I'll come back in the evening and see if I can help him_,' Harry decided and excused himself from his friends after dinner to watch over the sick professor, knowing that the hospital wing was full of sick students and that Aunt Poppy had handed the professor a long list with urgently needed potions that very morning.

He popped himself into the professor's quarters, finding the man in his lab as expected. Harry noticed with concern that the wizard's cheeks were feverishly flushed and that he looked worse for the wear.

Harry was very careful, knowing that he could neither show himself nor alert the teacher to his presence. However, whenever the teacher took a small break to blow his nose, take a potion or steady himself for a moment, Harry quickly continued with whatever ingredient the professor had just been preparing, hoping the man didn't notice how quickly his work proceeded.

A few minutes after midnight, Harry felt that the professor was too ill to brew anymore. He quickly pointed his hand at the man's head, letting out a horrified gasp as he took his temperature. '_That's dangerously high. He must go to bed_,' he mused, feverishly searching his mind for a solution. Glancing at Poppy's list, he saw that the professor still had to brew a fever reducer, a headache potion and a pain relieving potion. All three were relatively easy potions, which Harry knew by heart. '_I must stay invisible, but I'll speak to him and send him to bed_,' he resolved and proceeded to carefully address the professor.

"Master Professor Severus, you're very ill and should go to bed. I'll brew the remaining potions for you, and you can check them out in the morning, before I take them to Mistress Poppy," he offered in a small but firm voice, causing the professor to throw a confused look in his direction.

"Have you been helping me the whole evening?" he croaked. "Who are you? Are you Cicero's apprentice?"

"Yes, Master Professor Severus. I'm Cicero's and Misty's apprentice. I learn Potions and Healing. I'm sorry, but I'm not allowed to make myself visible. Please don't tell Cicero that I've been speaking to you, sir," Harry replied shyly. "Will you allow me to help you to bed, please? You're running a very high fever."

Apparently realising that he couldn't keep himself on his feet anymore, Snape agreed and didn't protest when Harry grabbed his hand and popped him straight into his bedroom, where he helped him into bed.

During the rest of the night, Harry popped himself between the professor's bedroom and the lab, brewing the three potions and checking on the teacher, trying to get his fever down. By the time he had finished the potions, he noticed in relief that the professor's fever broke. '_Thank God_,' he mused, knowing that he had only an hour left, before he would have to return to the elf quarters in order not to let his guardians know where he had spent the night.

Unfortunately, unbeknownst to the busy boy, his own health condition hadn't been able to keep up with his lack of rest during the night, and he wasn't invisible anymore.

_

* * *

tbc..._

_Thank you so much for your kind reviews. I hope you liked the chapter._

_I'm not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes or help me to correct them._

_All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	6. Discovery

**6 – Discovery**

When he checked on the professor again and made him take his potions, Snape opened his eyes, looking at the child in surprise.

"Who are you?" he queried as he fiercely rubbed his eyes, wondering if he was delirious to see a house-elf in the form of his childhood enemy in front of himself.

"I'm the elf who looked after you during the night, Master Professor Severus," Harry replied softly. "I finished the potions. Here is one phial of each of them. Could you please check them out, so I can take them to Mistress Poppy if they're all right?"

"You are a house-elf?" Severus queried in disbelief.

"Yes," Harry replied, wearily noticing that his magic that kept him invisible had to have worn off as a violent shiver shook his body and he couldn't prevent himself from letting out a few harsh coughs.

"Tell me how high my temperature is," Snape demanded, throwing the boy a stern look.

Harry held his hand to the professor's head. "38.3, sir; it came nicely down during the last hour."

"So I am not delirious," Snape said more to himself than to the child. "Why do you look like a human child if you're a house-elf?"

Harry sighed as he couldn't prevent himself from letting out a series of sneezes. '_I must have caught the flu from the professor, and my invisibility magic must have failed because I was too tired_,' he mused, before he replied, "The elves took me in and raised me when I was a year old, so originally I'm human, but the Hogwarts house-elves are my family. Misty, Malcolm and Cicero are my guardians. I'm so sorry, Master Professor Severus. I wasn't supposed to show myself, but my magic must have failed when I became too tired. I'll be in so much trouble."

"You won't be in trouble, child," Severus replied and his features softened immensely as he observed the boy, who was feverishly trying to keep himself on his feet in spite of obviously feeling horrible. "You're ill though. Did you catch the flu from me?"

Harry nodded slightly. "Probably. I'm not very healthy, but it's all right, Master Professor Severus. Misty will make me better when I return home. Master Severus, could you perhaps keep it to yourself that you saw me and know about me, please?"

'_The elves must have taken him from the Dursleys against Albus' wishes_,' Severus mused. '_That explains why the only three elves that are not bond to Albus are his guardians. Nevertheless, he nursed me back to health and he brewed the potions for me, moreover he seems to be very adept, considering that all the potions look correct. He seems to be nothing like his father_.' "Harry," he finally spoke up, noticing that Harry shrank back in fright at the mentioning of his name, "I promise to keep your secret. Allow me two questions though."

Seeing Harry lightly nod, he asked, "Why were you here last night in the first place, and why are you so adept at brewing?"

Harry smiled and explained that he had noticed the professor was ill and had many potions to brew after his classes. "Cicero has brought me here every day, and I've always watched you brew, so I hoped I could help you, sir," he finished his explanation, shyly averting his eyes to the floor.

"Harry, I appreciate your help very much. Thank you for looking after me and for brewing the potions for me. If you love to brew, and if Cicero doesn't mind, you may come and assist me with brewing whenever you have time."

"Really?" Harry asked in excitement, slowly looking back at the professor.

"Yes; however, you seem very ill to me, and as much as I'd love to return the favour and nurse you back to health, my Healing knowledge is very limited, and you'll be better off with Poppy or Misty," Snape explained, motioning the boy to sit on the edge of his bed.

"Could you call Misty please?" Harry queried and hurriedly sat down, realising that he couldn't keep himself upright much longer.

Seconds later, Misty and Cicero popped into the room, throwing a visible Harry worried looks. While the professor filled the elves in, Misty checked on Harry, spelling a huge amount of Healing magic into his body, before she did the same with Severus to ensure that his condition was strong enough to not catch the Grindylow pox from Harry that were once more spreading all over his mouth and throat.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

When Harry woke up, he found himself in the infirmary of the elves' quarters. Misty was sitting on the edge of his bed, skimming through an old tome.

"Hey sweetie, are you feeling better?" she queried, smiling down at the child.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know that I turned visible," Harry apologized.

"It's all right, Harry," Misty replied softly. "Master Severus promised to keep your secret. He also told us that he'd love to teach you Potions, because you seem to be very adept. You also managed to heal him from the flu, although you unfortunately caught it from him. I'm very proud of you, son."

"Thank you," Harry said happily, before he drifted back to sleep with a happy smile playing on his face.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

During the remaining two years of his Pre-Hogwarts education, not only Misty, Cicero and Malcolm taught Harry, but Poppy and Severus proceeded to directly teach the child, and Harry enjoyed himself very much.

A few days before Harry's eleventh birthday, Malcolm handed Harry a letter. "It's your invitation to study at Hogwarts. You need to reply to the letter."

"Um... Can't I just pop myself into Mistress Minerva's office, make myself visible and tell her I'd like to attend Hogwarts?" Harry queried with a confused expression on his face, causing the elves to patiently explain that everyone except for Poppy and Severus had to assume that he was living together with his relatives.

"I don't think it matters if Mistress Minerva finds out," Malcolm said thoughtfully. "She'll probably take it as well as Mistress Poppy and Master Severus, but we shouldn't take any risk for the Headmaster to know. Harry, write your letter, and I'll hand it to one of the school owls."

"May I ask something?" Harry queried hesitantly as he handed Malcolm his reply. Seeing his guardian nod, he continued, "I'd love to pop to Diagon Alley and get my new school books, but I don't have any money."

Malcolm sighed. "Oh, that's no problem, Harry. I think Cicero is the best to introduce you to the goblins at Gringotts. He told us a few years ago that your parents have left you several vaults of gold at the bank, and you only have to go there and talk to the goblins to get your money. I will speak with Cicero."

"Thank you, Malcolm," Harry replied, feeling very reassured at the elf's words, until another thought struck his mind. "Um... Malcolm, will I have to live together with the students? Or can I stay at home?"

"You will be sorted into a House, and you're going to sleep in the students' dormitories together with the other students. However, depending who is going to become your Head of House, we might be able to talk her or him into letting you go home during the weekends, and of course you can pop home whenever you want, as long as no one misses you."

"Okay," Harry said, sighing in relief. "What about Nina and Tony?" he couldn't help asking in spite of knowing instinctively that his best friends wouldn't be able to attend the students' classes together with him.

"You can always come home and talk or play with them," Malcolm said softly.

A few days later, Malcolm, Cicero and Misty observed Harry play hide and seek with Nina, Tony and a few other friends. "I hope he'll be able to stay friends with them, especially with Nina and Tony. They are so close," Misty said thoughtfully.

"I don't believe this will be a problem," Cicero replied softly, gently squeezing her hand, before he noticed what he was doing and hurriedly let go.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

At the same time, a teachers' meeting took place in the staff room.

"Minerva, Pomona, thank you for taking the Muggle born first years shopping," Dumbledore said. "I'm afraid that we forgot someone though. Hagrid, I'd like you to take Harry Potter to Diagon Alley tomorrow. Although he is not Muggle born, he grew up with his Muggle relatives, who probably won't know where to buy his school supplies."

"Yes, P'fess'r Dumbledore, I'll go to the Dursleys and take lil Harry to buy his school things t'morrow morning," Hagrid agreed immediately.

_

* * *

tbc..._

_Thank you so much for your kind reviews. I hope you liked the chapter._

_I'm not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes or help me to correct them._

_All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	7. Diagon Alley

**7 – Diagon Alley**

"Albus," Snape suddenly threw in, thoughtfully, "if you don't mind me taking the boy to Diagon Alley, I'll do so. I have to fulfil a promise I made to Lily years ago, and I'd prefer to get to know the child before he comes to Hogwarts."

"Very well, Severus. Of course I don't mind you taking Harry to Diagon Alley," Dumbledore agreed, and the Potions Master noticed in annoyance that the Headmaster's eyes were twinkling with joy.

Back in his quarters, Snape called Cicero and explained about taking Harry to London. "I'd like to go tomorrow. Is Harry free, or is he involved in any important schedule?"

"No Master Severus, Harry is supposed to have a lesson with Mistress Poppy in the morning, but I'll ask Mistress Poppy to reschedule."

"Very well then, tell Harry to come to my office at nine o'clock in the morning."

"Yes sir. Harry will be very pleased that Master Severus is so kind as to accompany him. He has taken a great liking to Master Severus," Cicero replied and bowed.

"He is a cute child," Snape replied, ignoring the small voice at the back of his mind that screamed, '_He is Potter's offspring. How can he be cute?_' When he busied himself in his lab later in the evening, wondering if Harry would come to assist like he often did, he thought, '_He is also Lily's child, and he is at least as adept at brewing as she was. He also has her kindness, and the elves have raised him very well_.'

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

Cicero popped into the hospital wing, where Misty and Harry were observing Poppy heal a student's broken rib. He waited patiently until they were finished, before he informed them about the change in Harry's schedule.

"I know," Poppy said, smiling. "I was so relieved when Severus spoke up in the staff meeting and offered to take Harry. Professor Dumbledore was just about to send Hagrid to the Dursleys, and I'd rather not try to imagine what would have happened if they didn't know anything about Harry."

"They would, Mistress Poppy," Cicero spoke up sincerely. "When Harry arrived here as a baby, I placed a Charm on the Dursleys. Whenever someone would have asked for Harry, they'd have replied that he had gone to a friend and they didn't know when he'd come back."

"Oh, that was a brilliant idea, Cicero," Poppy commended him softly. "That's probably the reason while Arabella Figg never declared him as missing. She was supposed to keep an eyes on Harry at the Dursleys. Now Harry, are you ready to go shopping with Professor Snape tomorrow?"

"Yes, Aunt Poppy. I'm looking forward to buying my new books very much," Harry replied with a huge smile playing on his face.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

In the morning, Harry excitedly popped himself into the Potions Master's office. "Good morning, Professor Snape," he said, making himself visible.

"Right on time, good morning Harry," Snape replied in an even voice. "Are you familiar with the Floo network?"

Harry shot the professor a frightened glance. "I know what the Floo network is, sir, but I prefer to pop. I can pop both of us together invisibly. As long as you touch any part of my body, you will be invisible too, sir. Just tell me where you want us to go."

'_If he talks like that he seems as arrogant as his father_,' Snape thought but decided to trust the child and try him. "Very well then; do you have money, or do we need to go to Gringotts first?"

Harry chuckled and admitted, "Cicero and I popped ourselves into Gringotts yesterday evening. It's easier to pop, because we can pop straight into my vault and don't have to ride these strange carriages. Cicero has always arranged things for me like getting money for me and such. He also spoke with the Goblins to make sure the Dursleys wouldn't receive any money from my vaults."

"Very well then, can you take us in front of Madam Malkins' shop then?" Snape decided, throwing the child a questioning look.

"Okay, sir," Harry replied. He turned invisible, and seconds later, Snape felt a movement similar to apparition.

Feeling that the movement had stopped, the Potions Master hesitantly opened his eyes, noticing that he found himself in the middle of Diagon Alley.

"We can't make us visible here in the middle of the street," he heard Harry whisper as the boy led him around the corner into a small side street and let go of his arm, making himself visible at the same time.

'_That was brilliant_,' Snape mused. '_I absolutely detest getting off the Floo at the Leaky Cauldron_.' "Well done, Harry," he commended the child and motioned him into Madam Malkins' shop to buy school robes.

A few hours later, after having a hard time to decide if he wanted an owl or a cat and finally deciding on a snowy white owl, Harry threw the professor an incredulous look. "Why do we need to buy a wand, sir? I can just wave my hand to do magic."

Snape sighed and explained in a small voice that most wizards and witches weren't able to perform wandless magic, and if Harry wanted to stick out in class by being the only one not using a wand.

"Oh no," Harry replied, terrified, and hurried ahead into Ollivander's, followed by a smirking Potions Master.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

During the remaining four weeks until the beginning of his first year as a student, Harry read all of his school books and made sure to ask his guardians and Severus whenever there was anything he couldn't understand.

"Mum, will I still be allowed to return home during the school year?" he asked in a small voice on the last evening of the holidays, suddenly feeling very small and uncertain.

"Of course, sweetie; you may pop yourself back home whenever you want. Just make sure no one observes you pop away." She threw the child a concerned look, knowing that Harry normally only became uncertain if he was sick. "Now, are you going to assist Professor Snape tonight?"

Harry slightly shook his head. "No. Mum, may I sleep in your bed tonight?" he asked hesitantly, while a small voice at the back of his head told him that he was much too old to sleep in his Mummy's bed.

"Of course you may, Harry," Misty replied softly but with growing concern. "Are you feeling all right, sweetie?"

"My head hurts a bit is all," Harry mumbled, lazily leaning against his mother.

Misty laid a hand on the child's forehead, realising that he was a bit warm. "All right then, get ready for bed and come to my room. We'll try to do something against your headache then." A few minutes later, she slipped under the covers with Harry, knowing that she would be able to get up again as soon as the boy was asleep. She quickly checked on the child and, after making sure that nothing else was wrong with him, she gently laid her hand on his cheek, letting some of her healing magic flow into the boy to help with the headache and his slightly elevated temperature. "Now sleep well, Harry," she said gently, placing a kiss on his forehead as he dozed off.

"Thank you Mum, love you," Harry mumbled as he nestled deep into Misty's embrace and drifted off to sleep.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

Snape spent the evening in his Potions lab, somehow feeling a little lonely without the boy's presence. During the last two years he had become used to Harry's company, since the boy always came to assist him, except for the rare cases in which the elves needed him to help them or when he was sick. Not only was Harry smiling most of the time, which often helped Severus' mood to lighten, but he was very sensitive and knew exactly when the professor was ready for a conversation and when he just wanted to be left in peace. Of course, the Potions Master would never admit to himself that he really liked the boy and had become very attached to him over the years.

'_I wonder what's keeping him tonight_,' he mused, when all of a sudden a thought struck his mind and he called Cicero. "Did you arrange anything for Harry? Is someone taking him to London, so he can ride the Hogwarts Express?" he asked the elf.

Cicero sighed. "I was supposed to take him to King's Cross tomorrow morning, Master Severus. However, Harry is a bit sick tonight, and Misty told me she wants him to rest tomorrow. If he is better in the afternoon, one of us will take him to Hogsmeade, so he can mix in with the students upon their arrival. Otherwise, he will only attend the Sorting ceremony."

"I can take him to Hogsmeade, if Misty deems him well enough," Snape offered, wondering where the Sorting Hat would place the boy. '_Probably Ravenclaw_,' he mused, '_although I suppose he'd fit in any House_.'

_

* * *

tbc..._

_Thank you so much for your kind reviews. I hope you liked the chapter._

_I'm not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes or help me to correct them._

_All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	8. The Sorting

**8 – The Sorting**

When Harry woke up in the morning, Misty was bustling around in the hospital room but returned to her bedroom as soon as she noticed that Harry was awake.

"How are you feeling, sweetie?" she asked softly in spite of already having checked on the child.

"I think I have a few spots," Harry mumbled, noticing that his mouth was a little sore, "but other than that I'm fine."

"I want you to rest today though," Misty said resolutely. "Today, the students will arrive and bring many Muggle illnesses to Hogwarts, and if you're having your spots, even if they aren't bad this time, your body is even weaker than normal and you're more susceptible to other illnesses. You don't have to stay in bed, but I want you to rest."

"I'll try to sleep a bit more," Harry decided, feeling uncomfortable with the achy spots all over his mouth. Seeing Misty nod approvingly, he lay down and drifted back to sleep. Harry slept until Misty woke him up at lunchtime and forced him to eat some rice with carrots, about the only meal he could stomach with the small spots in his mouth.

"Harry, if you don't feel well, you must come to me or go to see Aunt Poppy immediately; your spots aren't gone yet and you're running a slight temperature. However, if you feel well enough, you may spend the afternoon with Master Severus. He invited you to come and help him in his lab, and he's going to take you to the station in Hogsmeade, where you can join your classmates and ride the boats together before the Sorting Ceremony, provided that you're well enough. I'll come with you and talk to him. Tonight, I'll pop into your dormitory and check on you."

"Thank you, Mum. I'd love to go and help Professor Snape," Harry said, smiling gratefully when Misty gently placed two fingers to his cheek and let her Healing magic flow into his body, causing his headache to recede instantly.

"All right then, go and take a shower, and don't forget to dress in your school clothes. You don't have to take anything else with you; after the Sorting, the dormitory elves will fetch your luggage from your dormitory here and bring it to your school dormitory."

Harry nodded his understanding and headed to the bathroom to take a shower, before he admired himself in the mirror in his new outfit. '_I wonder where I end up tonight. I'm looking forward to school, but I really don't want to stay at school overnight. I'd prefer to return home and sleep together with Tony and the others in the elves' dormitory_,' he mused as he tried in vain to calm his unruly hair. '_The other students have much more reason to become homesick; I can return here at any time_,' a small voice at the back of his head spoke up, causing Harry to sigh as he popped himself into Professor Snape's office together with Misty.

Misty exchanged a few quiet words with the Potions Master, before she placed a kiss on Harry's forehead and said, "Good luck, Harry; I'll be invisibly watching the Sorting, and so will Cicero, Malcolm and Twinkle, and if possible we'll bring Nina and Tony."

"Thank you, Mum," Harry replied happily and turned to the professor as Misty popped away. "Good afternoon, sir, and thank you for taking me to Hogsmeade."

"You're welcome, Harry. We still have two hours left, before we have to leave. Are you feeling up to a round of wizard's chess?"

Harry threw the professor a surprised look. "Of course, I'd love to play wizard's chess, but Misty said something about helping you brew a potion."

Snape smirked. "Your mother told me not to make you do any work but let you rest. Therefore I changed my plans. In fact, I wish to speak with you about a few topics anyway."

"All right sir," Harry replied curiously and followed the professor into his living room, taking the offered seat at the small chess table, where they had already played chess several times during the last two years.

A few minutes into the game, the Slytherin Head slowly began to speak. "Harry, from tonight onwards, you'll be a student here at Hogwarts. For me this means that I have to treat you in the same way in which I treat all the other students. Depending into which House you'll be sorted, I might have to say outright nasty things to you in class. However, this is not meant personally, and it does not mean that our relationship will change in any way. We just have to keep in private how well we know each other. For example, you may still come and assist me; however, if you pop into my office, you should turn yourself invisible before popping in. On the contrary, if I call you into my office for detention or any other official reason, you may not pop but have to knock at the door like any other student, because I might not be alone in my office. Do you understand me?"

"Yes sir, I understand. Err... but I may still come and brew together with you, sir?"

Snape sighed. "You may do so; however, you must be careful that no one misses you and finds out about it. You also have to return to your dormitory in time for curfew, which might differ depending on which House you're going to be sorted into."

"All right sir," Harry replied, feeling slightly uncertain by the whole matter.

"During the first two weeks, you will brew the normal first year potions in class. After that, I'll officially speak with the Headmaster and your Head of House and suggest that you should be allowed brewing more difficult potions because you're very adept and are already able to brew fifth year potions."

"All right, thank you sir," Harry said. '_Well, it'll be a bit boring at first, but of course he has to pretend he doesn't know me_,' he mused, absently observing the professor take his queen away.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

The boat ride was much fun, and Harry enjoyed himself immensely. He sat together with a girl and two boys, and although it was so dark that he couldn't see much of their faces they were very friendly and talking animatedly.

"Oh look, there's Hogwarts. It looks beautiful," the girl said in amazement.

"Yeah, it must be terrific to live in a castle," one of the boys agreed, causing Harry to smile.

'_Hogwarts is wonderful, and it's my home_,' he thought proudly as he silently watched the illuminated castle, once more feeling very grateful towards his guardians, who had brought him to Hogwarts as a baby.

"I'll probably be in Hufflepuff," the girl replied on one of the boys' question.

While the others discussed the Houses they might possibly become sorted into, Harry was slowly beginning to become excited. He only half-heartedly listened to Professor McGonagall, who greeted the group before she finally led them into the Great Hall. Harry stood in front of the Head table together with the other first years, glancing up to find Severus and Poppy throw him encouraging smiles. Only when he looked in the other direction as he sat on the stool to be sorted, he saw Misty, Cicero, Malcolm, Twinkle, Nina and Tony stand in a corner at the back of the Hall. They were waving at him and had huge smiles on their faces.

Just when Harry noticed hot tears form at the back of his eyes, a small voice penetrated his ears. '_Oh, this is difficult. You would do best in Hufflepuff, but Ravenclaw would be an option too as well..._'

'_Oh please, I'm sure I wouldn't do well in these normal Houses_,' Harry thought back, '_please, I'll try to do my best not to be a dunderhead, but can you.._.'

'_I see; you've already chosen your mentor and want him to become your Head of House. I still think you'd do better in Hufflepuff, but if you're sure..._' It quieted, before it opened its large cramp and shouted into the Hall, "Slytherin."

Harry looked up to see the elves wave and clap their hands, while the Great Hall had become dangerously quiet. Only the Slytherin table erupted in applause, and the teachers were clapping their hands, while Severus and Poppy were throwing him smiles of approval. He quickly walked to the Slytherin table and took the seat right next to Draco Malfoy, who had been sorted a few minutes earlier.

'_Everyone seems very nice_,' he thought in relief as the students sitting near-by introduced themselves. Still not feeling overly well, he was glad that everyone was talking animatedly, so nobody noticed that he was hardly eating anything. He jumped up startled when a girl, who had introduced herself as Susan, a sixth year prefect, suddenly stood up and motioned them to follow her.

"Hurry up, don't dawdle; we're going to have a House meeting with the Professor in a few minutes," she called out as she chased the group down to the dungeons. She stopped in front of a huge portrait of a wizard, whom Harry knew to be Salazar Slytherin, and told them the password was 'Slytherin Pride.'

Harry watched in amazement as the other classes filed into the common room in rows of two and immediately began to sit on the floor in a perfect display of discipline, before the first years were instructed to sit as well. '_It's a strange feeling to be here as a student_,' Harry mused, glancing around the common room that was decorated in green tones. He had often come here to clean the room and to prepare everything for the students to arrive back, but being here to live here just seemed strange.

Harry was so engrossed in his musings that he missed most part of the teacher's monologue about House unity and the House rules. He only looked up when the professor's voice suddenly changed from his soft silky tone to a slightly louder, sterner tone as he said, "Now as some of the first years seem to be ready to drift off to sleep, I won't keep you any longer. You will find the House rules and the explanation of the snakes and toads system on the board over there. There is only one more thing left to be said," he paused to make everyone look at him in expectation, before he continued, "From this year onwards we have replaced the old dormitories with new small double rooms. This is a test so far, and if it goes well, we'll keep this system; otherwise we're going to change back to the old dormitory system..."

The whole House began to speak at the same time, and Harry noticed that even the older students seemed to be excited at the prospect of sharing their room with only one other student. "You'll find your names along with the room number on the board over there. First years go first. Your bedtime is going to begin in fifteen minutes. Good night."

With that, the first years dashed over to the board to find their names. '_Only one other student sounds good; I've never lived in such a small room since I was small_,' Harry mused, '_on the other hand, it'll be horrible if it's someone I can't get along with_.' He anxiously waited in the line to get a glimpse at the board, when a boy stepped over to him.

"Come, Potter, you're with me," the boy said, pulling Harry along to the first room on the right side of the first years' corridor.

_

* * *

tbc..._

_Thank you so much for your kind reviews. I hope you liked the chapter._

_I'm not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes or help me to correct them._

_All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	9. New Friends

**ELVES' CHILD 9 – New Friends**

"I'm Blaise Zabini," the other boy introduced himself as they entered their room.

"Harry Potter," Harry replied, hesitantly extending his hand to the other boy.

"Hello Harry," Blaise said, smiling. "I was surprised, oh well, not only I but most likely the whole school, that you were sorted into Slytherin. Everyone probably expected you to be a Gryffindor."

Harry threw the other boy an astonished look. "The Hat said something about placing me into Hufflepuff, but I told him I wanted to be here, because I thought Slytherin would be more interesting," he replied in a small voice, yawning.

"Interesting," Blaise smirked. "Anyway, I'm glad to share a room with you. Now we better go to bed. If the professor is as strict as everyone says, we better try not to get too many toads."

"That's true," Harry agreed. Even if he adored the Potions Master, he had heard him interact with students, especially with Gryffindors, and was certain that he didn't want the teacher to be angry at him. He quickly used the bathroom and changed into his pyjamas, before he let himself sink onto his bed, wondering what Tony and the other boys in his dormitory were doing right now. '_They're probably exchanging funny stories about the new first years_,' he mused, inwardly chuckling. '_Blaise seems nice though_,' he thought as he drifted off to sleep, not noticing that Misty popped in and checked on him mere seconds later.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

The first day of classes was a bright and sunny day, and Harry was relieved when he woke up, noticing that the achy spots in his mouth were completely gone. His first class was Transfiguration, and he sat between Blaise and Millicent, another Slytherin first year, in the second row. '_It's strange_,' Harry thought as he tried to transfigure a match into a needle using his wand, '_I know Professor McGonagall so well, because I've accompanied Malcolm into her private quarters so often, but she doesn't know me at all_.' He slid his wand back into his robe pocket in frustration, waving his hand at the match. '_Why do I have to use a wand, when I can do it so much better with my hand_?' he thought, annoyed.

"Very well done, Mr. Potter; five points to Slytherin," McGonagall commended him gently, and Harry thanked her in a small voice, unaware of the curious look Blaise was shooting him from his right side.

HP HEALER POMFRFEY HP

While one of the prefects had led the first years to the Transfiguration classroom, everyone automatically followed Harry down to the Potions classroom for their second class. Harry, who was talking with Blaise and Millicent about Professor McGonagall's Animagus form, didn't even notice that he was leading the group. However, when they arrived in front of the still closed classroom, a Gryffindor girl, who seemed to be a know-it-all, eagerly addressed Harry.

"Harry, you seem to know your way around the castle so well. Do you think you could show me to the library later on? I'm Hermione by the way, Hermione Granger."

"Of course," Harry replied in confusion. "I'm Harry Potter."

"I'd love to see the library as well," Millicent spoke up. "Would you mind me accompanying you?"

"Me too," Blaise threw in, giving Harry an assessing look.

"Let's go all together," Harry whispered, noticing that the Potions Master had just opened the classroom door.

Harry smiled inwardly at the professor's efforts to intimidate the students, especially the Gryffindors, and listened in amusement as Snape tried to come up with a question that Hermione was unable to answer. It took him eleven attempts, before Hermione had to admit she didn't know the answer.

"You don't know? Pity," the professor sneered. "Mr. Potter, would you enlighten us please?"

Harry chuckled and easily answered the question, causing his classmates to look at him in awe. '_He is really mean_,' Harry mused, '_that's a fifth or sixth year question, and I only know it by chance, because I've helped him prepare the ingredients for the Grindylow pox potion so often_.'

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

The last afternoon class was Defence Against the Dark Arts, and Harry noticed horrified that his head began to hurt as soon as the professor entered the classroom. '_Oh no, don't let me get sick again so soon_,' he thought, terrified as he tried his best to practise the spell the teacher had just taught them. '_Maybe I'm allergic against Quirrell_,' he mused, remembering that his head had already hurt a few days ago when Quirrell had come to the hospital wing while Harry was assisting Poppy.

"Harry, are you feeling all right?" Hermione asked, helping him up from the floor.

"Just a bit of a headache, but I'm fine," Harry replied in a small voice, blushing deeply. "I just can't get used to using my wand. It's difficult," he muttered, causing Hermione to gently show him the wand movement.

Harry sighed in relief when the class was over, resolving to pop to Misty if his headache didn't clear up within the next few minutes. "All right then, shall we go to the library?" he asked his three new friends, who nodded enthusiastically.

"Harry, may I ask why you know Hogwarts so well?" Hermione asked curiously as they waited for the staircase to change its way.

"I can't tell you here and now; I'll tell you sometime when we're alone, only the four of us," Harry whispered, deciding to tell his three friends the truth.

"We could go out for a walk after doing our homework," Blaise suggested, and everyone agreed happily.

The four friends entered the library, and Harry watched the excitement and amazement his friends showed as they glanced around the room in amusement.

"This is absolutely gorgeous," Hermione blurted out.

"I love the Great Hall, but this room even tops it," Millicent agreed.

"Maybe we should always meet here for our homework; since Hermione is in Gryffindor we can only meet at one of these places if we want to do our homework together," Blaise threw in.

"Perhaps we could ask them to make study rooms for each year," Harry said thoughtfully, fiercely rubbing his forehead against the headache that was still bothering him. "Please excuse me for a few minutes. I'll be right back."

Unaware of the concerned looks his classmates were throwing him as they spread their homework over a table, Harry stepped behind a bookshelf, confirming that no one was there, before he turned invisible and popped home, searching for his mother.

"Harry, what are you doing here? Is something wrong?" Misty asked in concern, pulling the child close.

"I've a terrible headache ever since I came near Professor Quirrell," Harry admitted, causing Misty to touch his cheek, letting some healing magic flow into his body. "Thank you, Mum," Harry gasped in relief as he felt the pain recede. "Everything else is all right. I already have three friends," he said, telling Misty everything about his first day of classes.

"I'll speak with Twinkle about the study rooms for each year. I think that's a good idea, especially as the teachers always claim they want more unity between the Houses. Now take care, sweetie, and come home whenever you have problems. I'll ask the others if someone knows anything about Master Quirinus."

Harry felt very relieved and reassured as he popped back into the library, noticing in surprise that his friends looked at him in disbelief. "Is something wrong?" he queried, taking his seat next to Millicent.

"Harry, can we go out and talk first? We'd really like to know your secret," Blaise said, frowning.

"Harry, as much as I love to study, I'd like to hear your secret first, too. You walk away with a bad headache, looking horrible, and come back five minutes later, looking as if you were just returning from a week of holidays," Hermione said firmly.

"All right," Harry agreed and led his friends out onto the grounds to one of the spots that the elves frequented, because the students couldn't see it if they weren't in an elf's company. "Don't try to come back to this place here. You'll only be able to access it if you're together with me," he warned his friends, before he told them everything about his childhood. "Don't tell anyone what you heard now, otherwise, I'll have to ask the elves to obliviate you," he finished his explanation.

"We won't," his friends promised simultaneously.

"That's unbelievable," Millicent blurted out in amazement.

"Ah, that's why you could answer the question I couldn't," Hermione said, nodding in understanding.

"Exactly," Harry admitted and hesitantly explained about his illness, feeling very relieved that his friends and especially his roommate knew everything about him.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

The rest of the first week passed uneventfully, except for the Gryffindors' and Slytherins' first flying lesson. Neville Longbottom, one of the Gryffindor first years, wasn't able to remain on the ground as Madam Hooch had instructed the students, and his broom took him higher and higher into the air.

Seeing that the other boy was hanging from the gargoyle on the roof top, Harry quickly decided to act.

_

* * *

tbc..._

_Thank you so much for your kind reviews. I hope you liked the chapter._

_I'm not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes or help me to correct them._

_All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	10. Flying Lesson

**10 – Flying Lesson**

Unnoticed by the group of students standing around him, Harry turned invisible and popped himself onto the roof, from where he hurriedly grabbed the other boy, pulling him upwards.

"Don't worry, it's all right, I've got you," he told Neville, who was absolutely panicking, just like the group of students and the teacher down on the ground did as Neville suddenly vanished from the sight.

"Who are you?" Neville squeaked, unable to see anyone.

"It's me, Harry, but I can turn myself invisible. As long as you're in my grip, you're invisible as well. I'm going to pop us down to the grounds now, if you promise that you don't tell anyone that it was me who saved you."

"Harry, but how...? Oh, anyway, thank you, and please take me down from here. I promise I won't tell anyone," Neville stammered.

Harry took a deep breath as he landed on the ground with Neville. In fact, he wasn't feeling well at all. Never before had he popped himself over such a difference in height, especially together with a passenger. He quickly released the boy from his grip and dragged himself to a spot behind the group, where he rested for a few minutes, before he carefully made himself visible again.

"That was your doing, wasn't it?" Blaise whispered into his ear, just when Madam Hooch instructed them to mount their brooms.

"Yes," Harry replied, unconsciously rubbing his forehead.

"Are you all right?" Blaise asked.

"I'm a bit dizzy, but I already know how to fly, so I should be all right," Harry whispered back and obediently took into the air, only to notice that he felt even worse. Uncertain if he was able to keep himself on his broom, he slowly made his way down to the ground to rest for a few minutes. He landed right next to Neville, who was sitting in the grass, observing the flying lesson.

"Mr. Potter, I can understand that Mr. Longbottom is afraid of flying after his earlier experience, but I'd never thought you wouldn't love to fly, considering what a good Quidditch player your father was," Madam Hooch said in clear disappointment.

"I like to fly, but I don't feel so well," Harry replied in a small voice as a small shiver run through his body.

"You don't look well either," Madam Hooch said thoughtfully. "Mr. Longbottom, please take Mr. Potter to the hospital wing."

Feeling too bad to protest, Harry slowly walked next to Neville towards the hospital wing. Noticing that Neville was observing him curiously, Harry decided to tell the boy the truth. When they reached the huge staircase, Harry motioned him to sit down. "I don't think I need to go to the hospital wing. Let's just sit down and rest here for a minute," he said and told Neville about himself.

"I promise to keep your secret for myself, Harry. Thank you so much for telling me the truth and for rescuing me. You probably saved my life," Neville replied sincerely.

"I don't think so. Your magic would probably have saved you. I just didn't want you to get hurt," Harry replied, feeling uncomfortable at the praise. "Neville, I'm going to return to my dormitory for a while. Can you tell Blaise, please?"

"All right, if you're sure," Neville promised and, seeing Harry nod, returned to the Quidditch pitch.

Harry quickly pondered if he should pop home but decided not to bother Misty and popped himself back to the room he shared with Blaise. '_Maybe I'll feel better if I lie down for a while_,' he thought as he let himself sink on his bed and closed his eyes in order to make the room stop turning around. Before he knew what happened, he was fast asleep.

Harry's mind slowly turned back to awareness when a stern voice was calling his name. Horrified, he realised that his Head of House was sitting on the edge of his bed, lightly shaking his shoulder.

"Sorry," Harry whispered, unconsciously letting out a small moan.

"Harry, are you ill?" Snape asked, placing a cold hand on the boy's forehead.

"I feel a bit dizzy, and my ears hurt," Harry replied in a small voice and told the professor what had happened earlier on the grounds.

"You might become dizzy by popping yourself over such a height, but I don't think you can become as feverish and sore as you seem to be," the teacher said, pulling a small bag out of his robe pockets. He produced a Muggle thermometer, which he coaxed under the boy's tongue, instructing Harry, "Keep it in place and let me take your temperature."

While they were waiting for the reading to register, the professor said in a much sterner voice, "Harry, I'm a bit disappointed in your behaviour. Madam Hooch told me at dinner that she sent you to the hospital wing, but Poppy said that you never showed up. If a teacher tells you to do something, I expect you to obey, even if you disagree and think you don't have to see Poppy like you obviously did. Moreover, if you feel sick, you have to go to Poppy and let her check on you. I'm afraid you earned yourself two toads today."

"Sowwy," Harry mumbled around the thermometer, feeling even more miserable after disappointing his favourite professor.

"Don't speak now, just keep it in mind the next time," Snape said in a much softer voice. Frowning as he plucked the device from Harry's lips, he lit the tip of his wand and examined the boy's ears and throat, before he said, "You probably have a middle ear infection. Your throat seems to be infected too, but I'm not sure, because of the Grindylow pox that are beginning to spread all over your mouth again. In any case, you're running a fever and I must either take you to Poppy or ask Misty to come and check on you. Which do you prefer?"

"Mum," Harry said miserably, trying to fight the tears back.

Misty appeared in the blink of an eye and checked on Harry, before she told the professor that he had obviously caught a Muggle illness but would probably be fine after two days of bed rest. She promised to come and look after Harry, and the professor agreed that Harry could stay in his room and didn't have to move to the hospital wing.

Thankfully, the following day was a Saturday, and Blaise and Millicent spent the whole weekend keeping Harry company, and Harry was glad that he had told his friends the truth about himself on the first day of classes. When he finally felt better on Sunday evening, he asked Misty to make herself visible and introduced his mother to his friends. '_It's just a pity that Hermione can't join us here_,' he mused as his friends left the room for the first year meeting that was taking place every Sunday evening. '_I wished I could go to the meeting as well_,' he thought. '_I'm well enough; Mum is just too overprotective_.' He scrambled out of bed and fetched his Transfiguration book, knowing that he had to do his homework, even if Misty had forbidden him to study and the professor had promised to excuse Harry with his teachers.

"Harry, what do you think you're doing?" his Head of House's voice suddenly penetrated his ears.

"Homework," Harry said tentatively, quickly putting his book away as the teacher raised an eyebrow. "Professor, what can I do to make up for my toads?"

"Your first priority has to get back to health. If and only if you're completely well again, you may help me in the potions lab. If I officially ask you to assist, I can give you snakes for your help that'll make up for your toads. I'm also going to speak with the Headmaster about your brewing abilities. If he agrees, you'll be allowed to brew more difficult potions in class."

"Thank you," Harry said happily, "I'd like that."

"Very well; there is still something else we need to discuss. Cicero told me that you're getting headaches in Professor Quirrell's company. Is that true?"

'_Oh no, I probably was supposed to tell him_,' Harry thought terrified. "It only happened twice, sir, and it wasn't bad," he whispered, frantically thinking, '_no more toads please_.'

"Your mother said that it was quite bad. If anything like that happens again, I wish to be informed immediately, even if it happens during class. Send one of your friends to fetch me. Is that clear?"

"Yes," Harry breathed, relaxing somewhat as the professor sat on the edge of his bed.

"Harry, the elves think, and I second the thought, that Professor Quirrell might be possessed by the Dark Lord's spirit that tries to get a body in order to completely revive the Dark Lord. Since it was you, who robbed him of his own body, naturally, you're his number one enemy. Therefore, you have to be very careful. The elves are trying to make a plan how to destroy the spirit, and Cicero promised to keep me updated. I shall inform you as soon as I know more. I can exempt you from your Defence Against the Dark Arts class and teach you myself if you wish."

"Yes please," Harry replied, nervously playing with his bed covers as he tried to fully comprehend the frightening news.

"Very well; I'll speak with the Headmaster, and I'll compare our timetables to fix the time for our class."

"Is it not too much trouble, sir?" Harry asked shyly. '_I'd love to have Defence class with Severus, but I don't want to bother him so much_.'

"No; otherwise, I wouldn't have offered," the professor replied in his soft, silky voice. "Now, there is something else I would like to discuss with you..."

"Harry, Harry, you won't believe it!" Blaise and Millicent suddenly shouted, dashing into the room, but quietened immediately at the sight of their strict Head of House sitting on the edge of Harry's bed. "Sorry Professor," Blaise said quickly.

_

* * *

tbc..._

_Thank you so much for your kind reviews. I hope you liked the chapter._

_I'm not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes or help me to correct them._

_All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	11. Potions for Every Purpose

**11 – Potions for Every Purpose**

"It's all right; go ahead," the Slytherin Head said, smirking at the excited first years as he stood from the edge of Harry's bed.

"Harry, one of the prefects came and told us the teachers have decided to make study rooms for each year, which will be common for all Houses," Millicent blurted out, causing a huge smile to appear on Harry's face.

"That's fantastic. That will make it much easier to study together with Hermione," he said happily.

"Strangely, this solution was initialised by the house-elves," the professor explained, quirking an eyebrow. "Cicero and Twinkle approached me and asked if I could suggest the idea to the Headmaster, who of course loved the thought, because he is very keen on improving the relationship between the Houses. He immediately called Twinkle and instructed him to arrange for the rooms, and Twinkle told him that the elves had overheard Slytherin students talk about the matter and decided to take the idea to me. Is my guess correct that it was your idea, Harry?"

Harry uncomfortably shifted in his bed. "No, we all had the idea, because Hermione is our friend and we don't have any place, where we can study together, except for the library."

"No Harry, that's not true. It was your idea," Millicent and Blaise objected simultaneously, causing Harry to blush and shyly avert his eyes to his covers.

"Very well, Harry. The Headmaster awarded one hundred points to Slytherin for the brilliant idea." Harry's expression changed to one of disbelief as the professor continued, "Ten snakes for gaining so many House points, Harry."

"Thank you sir," Harry replied, feeling very happy. '_Thank God I was sorted into Slytherin. I love this House_,' he mused as he tiredly lay back and closed his eyes, unaware of the concerned looks he received from his friends and the teacher.

"Will Harry be allowed to attend classes tomorrow, sir?" Blaise asked worriedly.

"Probably yes," the professor replied evenly as he crossed the room. "Curfew is going to begin in fifteen minutes."

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

During the next few days, Harry, Hermione, Millicent and Blaise were the only students who utilised the first years' study room, until Harry invited Neville to join them when he had the chance to speak with the other boy during Potions class.

"Maybe you can keep an eye on the dunderhead. He has no brewing abilities whatsoever," the Professor had asked Harry after their Defence lesson the evening before, and Harry had gladly agreed to help Neville if he had problems brewing, knowing that the boy had already managed to make his cauldron explode twice. From that time onwards, Harry always sat next to Neville in Potions, and while he was brewing the fifth year potions the teacher assigned him, he watched from the corner of his eye how Neville tried to fulfil his easy first year assignments without much success.

One day, Harry observed Neville making a mess of his ingredients and instructed the boy to wait a moment, while he quickly put his own potion under a stasis charm. "Now Neville, let me show you," he whispered and carefully guided his friend through the brewing process.

"Thank you so much, Harry," Neville said gratefully as he proudly glanced at his flawlessly brewed potion. "Will you still manage to finish your own potion?"

"Neville, shall we revise the different kinds of ingredients and how to prepare them tonight?" Harry whispered back, before he glanced at his wrist watch, frowning as he realised, '_I won't be able to finish my own potion_.'

"Mr. Potter, please leave your work space as it is and remain after class," Snape addressed him as he was just about to cast the Evanesco spell at his half-finished potion. "You have a free period next, don't you?" the professor queried, glancing into Harry's cauldron.

"Yes, it's Defence class," Harry replied, throwing the professor a hopeful look.

"Very well then, you may remain here and finish your potion. One snake for saving all of us from a Longbottom disaster."

"Thank you," Harry replied, feeling very happy at the praise. He quickly continued his potion, only looking up shortly when the Weasley twins sat next to him at the beginning of the next class.

"Detention?" one of them asked sympathetically.

"No, I had to help a classmate and couldn't finish my own potion," Harry replied shortly, watching from the corner of his eye how the twins prepared their ingredients. '_They're very adept, and they're funny too. I like them_,' he mused as he absently stirred his nearly finished potion.

"What are you brewing?" the twin sitting next to Harry suddenly asked, curiously glancing into his cauldron.

"Ah, that's the basic potion to make a salve for sunburn," Harry whispered back. "It'll have to simmer for a few hours to become thicker though."

"You're a first year, aren't you?" the boy asked in surprise. "We didn't make such difficult potions in our first year."

Harry smirked. "Well, that's a fifth year potion. I love to brew," he said apologetically.

"Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley, shut up," the professor suddenly interrupted their conversation, causing Harry to throw the teacher a terrified look.

"Harry, come with us for a moment," the twins whispered to him at the end of the class. "If you're so good at brewing, could you perhaps help us brew some prank potions sometime?"

"I'd love that," Harry replied, smiling. "Just tell me when you want to brew and I'll ask the professor if we may use the Potions classroom," he offered.

"Sunday morning after breakfast," the twins suggested, and Harry happily agreed. "I'll ask Professor Snape, and I'll tell you through Hermione or Neville if I don't see you around."

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

As adept as Harry was in Potions, as many problems he had in Transfiguration and Charms, where he had to use his wand. Defence Against the Dark Arts was not so much of a problem, because Professor Snape knew about his difficulties. He always made Harry practise each new spell he introduced wandlessly, before he made the boy practise with his wand until he was able to properly cast the spell. Harry realised soon that the teacher was very strict and didn't let loose until he was content with his performance. In Transfiguration and Charms it was much more difficult since he didn't want the professors to know that he was able to perform wandless magic.

"The Weasley twins invited me to brew joke potions together with them on Sunday morning. May we perhaps use the Potions classroom, sir?" Harry said hesitantly when the professor dismissed him after their Defence lesson and they headed to his private potions lab.

"Prank potions?" Snape queried, raising an eyebrow at the boy. "If you promise that the potions will be harmless and that no prank will be played against one special person or one specific House, you may."

"Um... against the teachers?" Harry queried, grinning. "I'll of course inform you beforehand, and I'll show you the potion, so you can check if it's all right, before we give it to anyone."

"Very well," the teacher agreed, smirking, knowing that he could rely on the boy. "Do you have completed your assignments?"

"Yes of course," Harry replied eagerly, knowing that the professor would only let him assist if he had finished all his homework.

"Very well then, if you begin preparing these ingredients for the Pepperup potion, I'll look if I can find some interesting potions you could try out with the twins."

"Really?" Harry asked in excitement and quickly set to work. Two hours later, he flawlessly finished the potion and filled it into small phials, holding one of them out to the professor.

"Well done, Harry; thank you very much. I'll take it to the hospital wing, and you've earned yourself another snake for a perfectly brewed potion."

"Thank you sir," Harry replied, yawning. "May I pop from here?" he asked hesitantly, suddenly feeling very tired.

"Of course; good night, Harry. Curfew is going to begin soon anyway. Take this book with you; I'm sure you'll find something interesting to brew together with Messrs. Weasley."

"Thank you sir. Good night," Harry said, smiling, before he turned himself invisible and popped straight into his bedroom.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

At lunchtime on Sunday, everyone sitting at the Head table was wearing bright, colourful hair in different colours. The Great Hall erupted in laughter at the sight of the Headmaster with his baby blue beard, Professor McGonagall with a neon green bun and Professor Flitwick with light pink hair. Merely the Potions Master's hair held a dark brown colour that was similar to its real colour.

"I wonder whose doing that is," Draco spoke up thoughtfully, "probably some of the sixth or seventh years, since such a potion is surely difficult."

"I don't think any of my classmates can do that," Susan, the sixth year prefect said pensively, "that's quite advanced, especially since all the teachers wear different colours."

Harry couldn't help the urge to chuckle and hurriedly left the Hall, unable to eat anymore without giving himself away. Only when he arrived at the study room to wait for his friends, he laughed, feeling very proud that he and the twins had managed to brew the potions so well. It didn't take his friends long to guess that it had been Harry to play the prank on the teachers.

"Harry, that's absolutely amazing," Hermione commended him in admiration.

"When will it wear off?" Blaise queried, raising an eyebrow in a very Snape-ish manner.

"Err... twenty-four hours I suppose," Harry replied, still chuckling. "Professor Snape knew about it though."

A few hours later, the friends were just about to head to dinner, when Twinkle popped up in front of Harry. "Harry, Master Professor Dumbledore wants to speak with you in his office right after dinner."

"Twinkle," Harry asked hesitantly, suddenly turning very pale, "is he angry?"

"Why would that be? Did you do anything bad?" Twinkle asked, throwing Harry a stern look.

_

* * *

tbc..._

_Thank you so much for your kind reviews. I hope you liked the chapter._

_I'm not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes or help me to correct them._

_All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	12. Agreements

**Elves' Child by Healer Pomfrey**

**12 – Agreements**

"Err... no, but..." Harry stammered, causing Twinkle to chuckle.

"Harry, the Headmaster would rather award House points for a well done prank than punish anyone. You really did well with your potion, but don't worry; it's about something else," Twinkle said gently, before he popped away.

"What was that creature?" Hermione asked in surprise, throwing Harry a questioning look. "Was that a house-elf?"

"That was Twinkle, the Headmaster's personal house-elf. I'm sorry; I completely forgot that you didn't meet any of the elves before. Millicent and Blaise already met my Mum when I was sick," Harry said apologetically. "I wonder what the Headmaster wants though."

While everyone was eating dinner, Cicero invisibly popped up behind Harry. "Harry, just agree to everything the Headmaster suggests. Master Severus will explain afterwards."

"Okay," Harry replied anxiously and stood up from his seat, noticing that the Headmaster had already left the Great Hall. He hurried towards the empty entrance hall and popped himself straight in front of the gargoyle guarding the Headmaster's office. Knowing that he belonged to the house-elves, the gargoyle let him through right away, and an instant later, Harry hesitantly entered the office.

"Good evening, Harry," the Headmaster greeted him gently, offering him a lemon drop, which Harry politely declined.

'_I just hope he didn't find out about my relationship to the house-elves_," he thought frantically as he took the offered seat, not able to find amusement in the Headmaster's baby blue hair.

"Harry, Professor Snape informed me that you're extraordinarily gifted at brewing potions," Dumbledore finally began to speak in a gentle voice. He suggested that you should be exempt from your normal Potions class. Instead, he wants to assign you more advanced potions to brew. He also told me that he already gave you private lessons from time to time and that he'd like you to become a so-called student assistant, which is indeed very uncommon for a first year. However, your Head of House believes that you would be able to fill such a post. As the Potions Master, Head of House and Potions Professor at the same time, Professor Snape has an enormous workload, and he is entitled to have a half-time assistant. However, as you might have noticed, the professor is not too fond of people in general, and so far he has always preferred to do everything on his own. However, this seems to be different now."

Dumbledore paused, giving Harry a sharp look. "You do not have to agree on this, my boy. Only if you're interested, and only after finishing your own school work, which must be your highest priority, you may help Professor Snape. I have already spoken with your other professors, and no one had any objections, although Professor McGonagall told me that you're having problems with Transfiguration."

Harry sighed inwardly, remembering that Cicero had told him to agree to everything. "I'd love to assist Professor Snape, sir. Err... Considering Transfiguration, I can do all the assignments just with my hands, but not with my wand, sir."

"You can do wandless magic?" Dumbledore queried, giving Harry a disbelieving look.

"Yes sir."

"Very well then; Professor McGonagall has offered to teach you personally. Please tell her exactly what the problem is, and she will probably be able to help you. Wandless magic is a very rare but useful ability; however, for your own safety I believe it would be for the best to keep it a secret for the time being. You may tell Professor McGonagall of course. She suggested that you come to her office every Saturday evening at nine o'clock."

"All right sir," Harry replied in spite of feeling very uncertain at the prospect of having private lessons with the Deputy Headmistress.

"Very well, Harry," Dumbledore said contentedly, popping a lemon drop into his mouth. "Harry, there is still one matter to discuss. The student assistants we had in the past, many years ago I have to admit, have been paid money for doing their job. However, I was wondering if you really want to receive money, considering the amount of gold your parents left for you anyway, or if you'd like to receive privileges instead."

"Privileges?" Harry queried, raising an eyebrow at the Headmaster.

"Privileges in your case could mean a later bed time or being allowed to participate in the Hogsmeade visits. Normally, only the students from third year onwards are allowed to go to Hogsmeade. However, since you're only eleven and your friends will not be allowed to accompany you, you have to remain with a teacher at all times."

"Thank you sir. I'd prefer the privileges, but I really don't need anything at all. I'd like to assist just because I like to brew," Harry replied quickly.

"Very well then, Harry." Dumbledore handed him a small parchment. "Please ask your guardians to sign this slip; all students need their guardians' signature in order to be allowed to participate in the Hogsmeade visits."

"Yes sir, thank you sir," Harry replied, feeling even more uncertain as he accepted the parchment.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

Harry spent the following days pondering feverishly how to explain to the Transfiguration professor that he was able to do all the first and second year Transfiguration spells and even many third year spells wandlessly, but not with a wand.

However, on Halloween something happened that made him forget about the matter for the rest of the week. While everyone was sitting in the Great Hall for the Halloween feast, Professor Quirrell suddenly stormed into the Hall, shouting something about a Troll in the dungeons, and the Headmaster ordered everyone back to their common rooms. When Harry, Blaise and Millicent obediently followed the Slytherins back to the dungeons, all of a sudden Neville appeared from behind, holding Harry back.

"Harry, please, you must help. Hermione has been hiding in the toilet crying the whole day because Ron was very mean to her. She doesn't know about the Troll. Can you come with me to warn her?"

The three Slytherins immediately turned around and followed Neville to the girls' toilets, sawing terrified how the troll entered the toilets, before they had a chance to warn their friend.

"Wait here," Harry instructed his friends and popped himself to Hermione, who only barely registered the troll coming into the bathroom, before Harry grabbed her and popped away together with her.

"Will a locking spell work against such a monster?" Blaise queried, glancing at the door.

"I don't think so," Hermione replied, still in shock at the thought of what might have happened if her friends hadn't come to rescue her.

"I'll fetch the elves," Harry said quickly and popped straight to Cicero.

Several minutes later, a worried Misty popped up in front of the group. "The elves have stunned the troll and popped him far away. The castle is safe now. Is any of you hurt? Harry, are you all right?"

"We're all fine; thank you, Mum," Harry replied, causing Misty to brush a light kiss on his forehead and pop away.

"Severus, what do you think how the troll was able to enter the school?" Professor McGonagall's voice suddenly penetrated the five students' minds.

"Quickly, hold on to me tightly," Harry hissed to his friends, turning himself invisible at the same time, before he slowly ushered the group towards the other end of the corridor, instructing the others to hold on tightly in order not to turn visible and be seen by the teachers. Ten minutes later they safely reached the dungeons, and Harry quickly popped Hermione and Neville in front of the Gryffindor common room, before he popped back straight into his own room, where Millicent and Blaise were already waiting for him.

"Maybe someone should tell the teachers that the troll is gone?" Millicent suddenly spoke up.

"Oh right, I'll speak to Malcolm and Cicero," Harry said tiredly, popping to the elves' quarters once again.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

During the following days, the troll remained the number one topic. Only on Saturday morning, Harry suddenly remembered about his private lesson with Professor McGonagall that was going to take place the same evening.

When Harry hesitantly entered the professor's office, the teacher motioned him to take a seat and made him perform all the Transfiguration tasks the first years had practised since the beginning of the school year. Some spells Harry was able to do after a few tries, but he just wasn't able to do others.

"All right Harry, one more spell," the professor finally said, noticing that Harry was getting tired. "Please transfigure this cat into a plush cat," she instructed him, placing a wooden cat on the desk.

Harry tried a few times, but knowing that he wouldn't manage to perform the spell anyway, he took his wand into his left hand, waving his right hand at the cat, causing the professor to let out a gasp as a grey kitten, looking identical to her own Animagus form, jumped down from the desk.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Professor," Harry stammered, looking terrified at the small cat that was running around the office before it decided to rest in front of the fireplace. '_It's cute though; it looks like McGonagall when she is in her cat form and sleeps in front of the fireplace in her living room_,' he mused, gratefully accepting the tea and a ginger biscuit the teacher offered him.

"Harry," McGonagall sighed, "you're obviously able to do wandless magic, but you have difficulties using your wand. Do I understand that correctly?"

"Yes Madam," Harry replied softly.

"Do you have an idea how you acquired the ability to do wandless magic? When did you even get the idea to try doing a spell wandlessly?"

Harry's thoughts went haywire. '_What should I tell her?_' he thought frantically, causing the professor to frown.

"Harry, please tell me the truth. I've known both of your parents very well, especially your mother was like a daughter to me. I even knew you well when you were a baby..."

"I know," Harry blurted out, interrupting the professor. Seeing her throw him a curious look, he whispered, "Malcolm told me the boy in the photo was me."

"Malcolm? Which photo?" McGonagall asked in confusion.

"You're playing ball with me and I'm calling you 'Gwanny Minnie'," Harry explained tiredly, unable to hide a huge yawn.

Only when the professor threw him a look of absolute disbelief, enquiring sternly, "Would you mind to explain why you are familiar with a photo that I keep on the sideboard in my bedroom?" did Harry realise his own slip-up.

_

* * *

tbc..._

_Thank you so much for your kind reviews. I hope you liked the chapter._

_I'm not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes or help me to correct them._

_All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	13. Busy Times

**Elves' Child - by Healer Pomfrey**

**13 – Busy Times**

"Professor, if I tell you the truth, can you promise not to inform the Headmaster?" Harry asked tiredly. "Professor Snape and Madam Pomfrey already know about it, and they have always kept my secret."

"If they are all right with it, I'll be able to promise you the same," McGonagall replied gently, motioning Harry to continue.

Harry told the stunned Head of Gryffindor the whole story how the house-elves had rescued him from the Dursleys and raised him at Hogwarts, causing the Scottish lioness to let out a long sigh of relief.

"Thank God Harry. I was so worried all these years, because I know from everything Lily told me how her sister hates the magical world. However, the Headmaster forbade me to check on you and reassured me that everything seemed to be fine. I only wished you had told me earlier."

"I'm sorry, Professor, but the house-elves told me to not tell anyone, because there was still a possibility that the Headmaster would send me to the Dursleys if he knew the truth. The others also only noticed by chance."

"When was that?" the teacher asked curiously.

Harry's expression became very thoughtful. "I don't know," he said finally. "Aunt Poppy has known for a long time, and Severus noticed about three years ago."

"So this explains your knowledge of Potions brewing and your ability of doing wandless magic. I suppose the house-elves taught you accordingly."

An hour later, Harry was finally dismissed and told to come back every Saturday in order to practise using his wand. By the time he popped back to the room he shared with Blaise he felt utterly relieved not to have to hide his secret from Professor McGonagall anymore, especially as the teacher really seemed to like him and had told him that she appreciated his upbringing with the house-elves very much.

HP HEALER POMFRFEY HP

During the rest of the school year, Harry was fairly busy with homework, extra lessons with Professor McGonagall and assisting the Potions Master. Every few weeks the Hogsmeade visits took place, and although Harry was a bit sad that his friends couldn't accompany him, he always participated. He had no idea how Cicero had managed to put the Dursleys' signature onto the parchment that allowed him to go to Hogsmeade, but whatever methods the clever elf had taken they had obviously worked. The first time, he obediently spent the day with his Head of House, but after that day the Weasley twins asked Professor Snape if they could take Harry with them, and the Slytherin Head agreed under the condition that the three students had to stay together the whole day.

After their huge success with the prank potion that changed the teachers' hair, Harry and the twins often spent their Sunday mornings together in the Potions classroom. As the Potions Master's assistant Harry was allowed to use the classroom at any time; however, in spite of being a first year he was fully responsible for everything that was brewed during these times. Harry liked the twins very much and enjoyed being together with them, especially since he trusted them enough to tell them the truth about himself. The twins' younger brother Ron, a Gryffindor first year, seemed to be very jealous about the fact that his brothers were spending so much time with Harry, but Harry didn't overly like the boy and kept his distance to him, especially after Ron got himself into several huge fights with Draco Malfoy, to whom Harry had a fairly good relationship.

So far, Harry had never been involved in any of the fights between Slytherin and Gryffindor students that were regularly taking place in the first years' study room. However, when Ron once cast a watering charm that his twin brothers had taught him on Draco's homework, Harry became really angry.

"Can you please behave here in the study room?" he hissed at the boy. "We're all trying to get along here, independent of our House."

"Ah, easy for you to talk isn't it, Potter? You think you're better than all of us anyway," Ron sneered, "being the greasy git's assistant in spite of being a first year and being raised by Muggles."

"Just shut up," Harry replied, resolving to spend one of his prank potions on the boy.

From the next morning onwards, Ron Weasley wasn't able to speak properly but was stuttering like Professor Quirrell.

"Harry, was that your doing?" his friends asked in surprise after their Transfiguration class.

"Yes; it'll wear off after five days," Harry admitted hesitantly, suddenly recalling that the Professor had forbidden him to use the prank potions against a single student or a specific House. "Oh no," he groaned, telling Blaise, Draco and Millicent about his agreement with their Head of House. "I better go and apologize to the professor," he said quietly.

"Harry, I'll come with you and tell him that it was the revenge of what Weasley did to me," Draco offered, pulling him over to the Head table as soon as they entered the Great Hall for lunch.

Professor Snape didn't take House points from Harry, but he gave him two toads and assigned him a detention in the evening. Harry was devastated. He had sworn to himself that he would never ever disappoint his favourite professor again. '_What if he doesn't let me assist anymore? I love to brew together with him. Will he ever allow me to brew together with Fred and George again or let me go to Hogsmeade with them? They're great friends, and I love to spend time together with them_,' he mused, frantically, completely unable to understand anything of what his teachers tried to teach the first years that afternoon. By the time he hesitantly entered the teacher's office, trough the door instead of invisibly popping in, he had put so much stress on himself because of the matter that he was spiking the green spots of the Grindylow pox in his mouth.

"Harry, as much as I can understand your reaction and as much as I appreciate that you wanted to help and revenge Draco, I am very disappointed. Even if you're still a first year, as my assistant you should know that you may never use potions on students to take revenge."

"Yes sir," Harry whispered, feeling very ashamed. "I'm sorry for disappointing you sir," he added, averting his eyes to the floor.

"I trust you that it won't happen again," the professor said in a much softer voice. "You will write this sentence one hundred times." He slid a parchment in front of Harry.

Harry glanced at the parchment, on which one sentence was written. '_I may not use potions to harm other students_,' it said. "All right sir," he whispered as he began to write, feverishly trying to fight the tears back that were welling at the back of his eyes. By the time he finished his sentences, he felt absolutely miserable. He quickly excused himself and went straight to bed, completely forgetting about the House meeting that was going to begin thirty minutes later.

"Where is Mr. Potter?" the professor asked sternly as the complete Slytherin House except for Harry and three fifth years, who were in the hospital wing, gathered in the common room.

"I'm sorry; I thought he was with you sir," Blaise said, throwing the professor a surprised look before he turned to their room.

"Stay," Snape said firmly. "I'll go and see what makes him think that he is entitled to miss the House meeting." With that he entered Blaise's and Harry's room, astonished to see Harry fast asleep. Frowning, he noticed that Harry's cheeks were slightly flushed and his forehead was sweaty. He worriedly felt the boy's forehead, causing Harry to jerk awake.

"Pfessor," he said sleepily. "What...?"

"The House meeting is just going to begin, but you seem to be ill, Harry," Snape replied in his soft, silky voice.

"It's all right. I'll attend the House meeting. I'm sorry, I completely forgot about it," Harry stammered, terrified as he hurriedly scrambled out of his bed, throwing his robes over his pyjamas.

"Only if you feel well enough, Harry," the professor replied sternly, resolving to properly check on the boy after the meeting.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

After the House meeting, Severus quickly fetched his medical bag and a few potions Harry would probably need and entered Blaise's and Harry's room, seeing in surprise that Millicent, Blaise and Draco were sitting next to Harry on his bed, speaking with the boy in soothing voices.

'_Maybe I was too strict with him_,' he thought. '_On the other hand, potions shouldn't be used to harm others, and Harry must remember that at all times, even if I know that he didn't want to harm Weasley, but still he has to stick to our agreement_.'

"Professor, you were much too strict with Harry. You should know that he'd never harm anyone, be it with potions or otherwise," Millicent's upset voice suddenly penetrated his ears.

"I know that of course, Ms. Bullstrode. Nevertheless he needs to remember not to use a potion to harm someone," he replied sternly, handing Millicent the thermometer from his bag. "Here, if you decide to sit in the way, you can make yourself useful and take Mr. Potter's temperature."

Millicent obeyed and Severus suddenly felt very sorry for Harry. "Harry," he addressed the boy in a soft voice. "There is no need to make yourself so upset that you become sick. As I said I was disappointed because you went against our agreement, but I know that you are very responsible and would never willingly harm anyone."

Harry gave him a slight nod, letting out a relieved sigh as Millicent plucked the thermometer from his lips. Severus frowned at the number the device displayed.

"Harry, do you have any other problems apart from the pox? Does anything else hurt?" he asked softly.

"No sir, only the pox," Harry mumbled. "Err... Sir, could you please not tell Mum? I don't want her to know how stupid I was," he added hesitantly, throwing Severus a pleading look.

"Very well then, if you don't want your mother to heal you," Severus replied thoughtfully. '_He would recover faster if Misty healed him, but then on the other hand I can understand that he doesn't want her to know_,' he thought, handing Millicent two phials for Harry. "I'll come back and check on you in the morning then. Ask Blaise to fetch me if you feel worse during the night." With that he left the room, deciding not to remind Millicent and Draco that curfew had already begun.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

One day at the end of April, Snape taught Harry a strange and extremely difficult spell in their Defence lesson, allowing him to try casting the spell wandlessly. Only when he was half-way satisfied with the result he told Harry, "The house-elves have figured out how to destroy the Dark Lord's spirit that is possessing Professor Quirrell. However, they need you, the Headmaster and me to cast the spell together with them. You need to practise a bit more, but as soon as you're ready we should set the plan into action.

A week later on a Sunday evening, the Potions Master deemed Harry prepared enough, and the house-elves popped the three wizards into the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher's office, where a group of elves together with Dumbledore, Snape and Harry was supposed to cast the spell at the professor. Harry's head exploded in pain as he eyed the possessed man.

_

* * *

tbc..._

_Thank you so much for your kind reviews. I hope you liked the chapter._

_I'm not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes or help me to correct them._

_All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	14. Tests

**14 – End of Year Tests**

As Snape had instructed him, Harry put as much magic as he could into the wandless spell and observed in amazement how Professor Quirrell sank to the floor, unconscious, while a dark cloud emerged from his head. The house-elves and the Headmaster immediately cast a second spell that captured the black cloud in a small cage-like ball, which reminded Harry immensely of the Remembrall his friend Neville possessed.

'_That's Voldemort?_' Harry mused as he glanced at the black cloud that was trapped in the ball, only barely noticing that Dumbledore asked him, Snape, Twinkle and Cicero to cast another spell together. Suddenly, the black cloud turned white, before it completely vanished as Malcolm waved his hand at the thing, shouting, "Evanesco."

"Very well; he seems to be gone for good," Dumbledore said contentedly, glancing at Quirrel, who was still unconscious.

Misty waved her hand over the professor, letting a huge amount of Healing magic flow into his body, before she spoke up. "He will survive. He'll need a few weeks to recover, but he should be fine by the beginning of the new school year."

'_Mum_,' Harry thought, delighted to see his mother but aware of the fact that he couldn't give himself away in front of the Headmaster. Misty turned herself invisible and gently brushed a kiss against his cheek, letting a small amount of Healing magic into his body as she touched him. "I love you, sweetie," she whispered, only for Harry and the elves to hear, before she popped away.

"Does that mean Quirinus managed to break the curse that was on the Defence teacher's position by beating Voldemort's spirit?" Dumbledore queried, turning to the Potions Master, who threw him a pensive look and slowly pulled his sleeve up to glance at his former Dark Mark that was still recognisable on his left arm.

"That might be, but I don't think that he is completely gone yet," he said evenly, before he turned to Harry. "Well done, Mr. Potter. Are you feeling all right?"

"Yes sir," Harry replied truthfully, realising that Misty had used her magic on him once again.

"I've already been looking for a Defence teacher for next year, but no one wants to take the post, except for Gilderoy Lockhart, but if Quirinus was able to fill the post for another year, that would be much better of course," Dumbledore said thoughtfully. "I better take him to Poppy right away."

"Very well then, let's return to the dungeons, Mr. Potter," Snape said softly, and the two wizards left the room.

"Professor, may I ask something?" Harry hesitantly addressed his Head of House, who threw him a surprised look.

"Of course you may ask whatever you wish, Harry."

"Why did I have to cast the spell together with the elves and you and not one of the older students that have much stronger magic and whose head don't explode in pain at Professor Quirrell's sight?"

Snape let out a long sigh, knowing that in fact it would have been the Headmaster's task to inform the child beforehand. "Through your scar you're connected to the Dark Lord, Harry. Therefore, it had to be you. We probably wouldn't have been able to expel his spirit from Professor Quirrell's head and to turn the black spirit white without your help."

HP HEALER POMFRFEY HP

Harry enjoyed the last few weeks of the school year very much, feeling utterly relieved knowing that Voldemort's spirit was not in Hogwarts anymore. However, he dreaded the end of year tests, because he was still having problems using a wand. One day, he voiced his concern when he was brewing together with his Head of House.

"Professor, do you think I'm going to fail my Transfiguration and Charms tests? I'm still having problems using my wand," he asked hesitantly, while he pureed five frog eggs and slowly stirred them into his cauldron.

"Harry, I don't think you will fail your tests," Snape replied thoughtfully. "Your marks haven't been that bad. Admittedly they were not as good as they should be considering how strong your magic is. However, the Headmaster is aware of your ability of doing wandless magic, and Professor McGonagall even knows everything about you. I'll discuss the problem with them and ask if you may do the practical part of your tests wandlessly. I will allow you the same for your Defence test."

"Thank you so much," Harry replied gratefully, thinking once again how lucky he was to be in Slytherin and have such an understanding Head of House. '_Professor McGonagall is very nice, too_,' a small voice at the back of his head spoke up, causing a small smile to play on his lips.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

It took Snape and McGonagall a while to convince the Headmaster and Professor Flitwick to allow Harry to absolve his tests wandlessly.

"It is essential that no one knows about his ability of doing wandless magic, since it would be a huge advantage for him in a fight against Voldemort or his Death Eaters," Dumbledore insisted.

"Yes Albus, I agree completely, and I promise to continue teaching him in private during the next school year," McGonagall said firmly, causing the Headmaster to finally give in.

Harry sighed in relief as the professors informed him and absolved all of his tests with ease, except for his Potions test. It took place on the last test day and was much more difficult than anything else. While his classmates were writing the theoretical part of their easy first year test, Harry found the questions on his own parchment very complex and difficult. He somehow managed to answer everything though. The potion he had to brew in the afternoon wasn't easy either. It was the antidote to Veritaserum, which Harry had only brewed once before more than six months ago. Very hesitantly, he handed the professor a phial with his yellow potion, noticing that the teacher's face remained completely void of any emotion.

Harry spent the rest of the day worrying if he had managed to pass his Potions test, unaware of the concerned looks his friends were shooting him. "What? Why are you giving me these looks?" he asked in annoyance as he realised everyone watching him.

"Harry, Hermione just asked you the same question for the fifth time. Now please listen and tell her that she answered everything correctly; otherwise, we'll never be able to forget about the tests for the time being," Blaise said, sounding very amused.

After Harry obeyed and answered all of Hermione's questions, Blaise spoke up again. "Harry, are you feeling ill or what's wrong? You look like a ghost."

"I think I failed my Potions test," Harry blurted out, causing everyone to gape.

Millicent laid a hand on his forehead, announcing, "He doesn't seem to have a fever. Harry, what's wrong?"

"I just told you," Harry replied in annoyance, looking sadly at his friends.

"Harry, that's not possible," Hermione said reasonably. "You're several years advanced. Did he give you a fifth year test, or what happened?"

"Something like that," Harry mumbled. "The theoretical part was an essay about the effect of moon fern in Healing potions and the allergies it might cause depending on when it was harvested." Seeing his friends throw him terrified looks he continued, "The practical part was very difficult, too. I had to brew the antidote to Veritaserum, and I think the colour was slightly off. It should have been light yellow, but my potion was just yellow, not light yellow."

"Harry, why don't you go and ask the professor about the test?" Blaise suggested.

"No, I'll go and sleep for a while. I'm tired. I helped Snape with an experiment until late in the evening, and I hardly slept after that, because I was so excited," Harry said tiredly and crossed the room.

"No Harry, you're going to see the professor right away," Blaise said firmly. "I won't let you worry the whole night only to make yourself sick again, and you can't miss the House meeting that's going to begin in an hour anyway." Blaise pulled Harry down to the dungeons and straight to the Potions Master's office.

It took nearly a minute, until the professor opened the door, and Harry and Blaise could see that he was in the middle of an apparently unpleasant conversation with a group of seventh years.

"Professor, Harry needs to speak with you," Blaise said, while Harry averted his eyes to the floor.

"I'm sorry, but I'm in an important discussion right now. We can speak after the House meeting," Snape said shortly, before he shut the door in the first years' faces.

"Thank you, Blaise," Harry mumbled. "I'm sorry, but I'm going to pop home for a while."

"Don't forget the House meeting," Blaise replied in concern, but Harry had already popped away.

Harry popped into the elves' quarters and looked for Nina and Tony, knowing that they should be free at that time of the evening. He told his friends everything about the test, glad that they both listened quietly.

"Harry, as happy I am to have you here, you'll be in so much trouble if you miss your House meeting," Nina said softly. "Why don't you ask Cicero if he knows anything about the Potions test?"

"That's a good idea," Harry agreed thoughtfully and went to see his guardian. He told him everything, causing Cicero to let out a long sigh.

"Don't make yourself so upset, Harry. Did you not wonder why the professor kept you so long last night in spite of the fact that you had your test today and that you need to sleep as much as you can?"

"I thought it was only because he needed help with his experiment," Harry replied, looking at Cicero in shock.

"I'm sorry, Harry; Master Severus is calling me. Wait a moment, please." With that Cicero hurriedly popped away.

Harry remained where he was trying not to panic. '_Did Snape want me to fail the test?_' he mused in disbelief.

_

* * *

tbc..._

_Thank you so much for your kind comments!_

_I'm not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes or help me to correct them._

_All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	15. The Truth

**15 – The Truth**

Harry looked up anxiously when Cicero suddenly popped back. "Harry, everything is all right; you don't have to worry. Master Severus kept you late, so that you didn't have a chance to speak with any of the fifth years, because he intended to make you take the same Potions OWL today, which the fifth years took yesterday. I already brought your test to the Ministry of Magic, and you'll receive the results from the Ministry, but Master Severus told me that you did well in both parts of your test..."

"Wait... The OWLs?" Harry asked in disbelief. "You mean that I took my Potions OWL today?"

"Yes, and I'm very proud of you, my child," Cicero replied, smiling. "Now, Master Severus called me to remind you that the House meeting is just about to begin. I told him that you weren't feeling well at the moment and would probably miss the meeting. Master Severus wants you to come to him as soon as you feel better."

"All right, thank you, Cicero," Harry said gratefully. "I'm fine, I'm only tired. I'll go and attend the meeting."

"Go and see Misty before you pop away. She'll be able to help you with the tiredness," Cicero advised him, and Harry left the room in search for his mother, knowing that a small amount of her Healing magic would work wonders.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

Even if his Head of House had reassured him that everything that Cicero had told him was true, Harry decided to keep the news about his Potions OWL for himself, at least for the time being. He only told Nina and Tony, who were still his best friends, even if he had gained so many friends among his classmates during his first official Hogwarts year.

When the holidays began, Harry was happy to return home to the elves' quarters and to his own dormitory for the time being; however, he felt sad at the thought of not being able to meet any of his friends during the holidays. '_If I told Dumbledore the truth, I could ask him if I may invite them for a few days_,' Harry mused as he trailed along behind his classmates towards the carriages that would take the students to the station in Hogsmeade. He had agreed with his guardians that he would board the train in Hogsmeade and then pop back home. '_I'll ask Severus and the others later on_,' he decided. Professor Snape had arranged a meeting with Professor McGonagall, Madam Pomfrey, Cicero, Misty, Malcolm and Twinkle in his quarters for the evening in order to discuss Harry's schedule for the summer. Being raised with the house-elves Harry was used to studying even during the summer, and when Snape had asked him if Harry wanted to continue all of his private lessons, the boy had happily agreed.

The adults agreed to take turns teaching Harry during the mornings, while he should do his summer assignments or help the teachers and elves during the afternoon as he saw fit. They also decided that he was not allowed to do any work in the evenings.

"You need some time off and you are in dire need of fresh air," Madam Pomfrey said sternly, causing Misty to happily agree.

"Harry, have you ever played Quidditch?" McGonagall asked curiously. "Your father was very good at it."

Harry sighed. "I know how to play, because I sometimes go flying together with the Weasley twins. They told me several times that I'd make a good Seeker, but I wouldn't want to play on a House team against my friends from other Houses." While he was still speaking, an idea crossed his mind. "How about a teachers versus elves Quidditch match?" he asked. "Wouldn't that be fun?"

"That's a good idea," McGonagall agreed immediately, throwing the elves a questioning look.

"I'm in," Twinkle said eagerly. "Malcolm, Misty, what do you think?"

"On which side are you going to play then, Harry?" Severus asked, smirking.

Before Harry could reply, Cicero spoke up. "As long as the Headmaster doesn't know that Harry resides at Hogwarts, he can't play in the open."

"I was thinking about telling Professor Dumbledore the truth," Harry admitted, "in order to be able to ask him if I could invite my friends to Hogwarts for a few days."

"I think it would be for the best," Poppy threw in, "because I believe that the hide and seek game Harry has been forced to play for more than ten years is going to be more difficult the better he gets to know the castle from a student's point of view. It would be much better for Harry if he could move without being conscious of being visible or invisible all the time."

"Thank you Aunt Poppy." Harry threw the Mediwitch a grateful look.

McGonagall looked questioningly at the Potions Master. "What do you think, Severus? Will he still try to send Harry to the Dursleys?"

"If he does, we'll just hide him again," Cicero and Misty spoke up simultaneously, causing Harry to feel very reassured.

"Very well then, shall I call him?" Severus queried, glancing around. Seeing everyone nod, he stepped to the fireplace and called the Headmaster, who stepped through the Floo a few seconds later.

"Harry, what are you doing here?" Dumbledore asked in surprise as he took a seat next to his Deputy on the sofa, glancing in surprise at the mix of members of the meeting.

"I shall explain," Twinkle offered and began to tell the Headmaster how the elves had taken Baby Harry from the Dursleys' doorstep and had raised him at Hogwarts.

Seeing that the Headmaster became more and more angry, Cicero said firmly, "Master Professor Dumbledore, it's not Twinkle's fault. Malcolm and Cicero took Harry from the Dursleys. We and Misty are his guardians in the elves' world."

"That's all very well, but Harry needs the protection of the blood wards that only his relatives can provide for him," Dumbledore replied firmly.

"Headmaster, I don't need their protection," Harry spoke up in an equally firm voice. "So far, the elves have always kept me safe, and they're my family. I fully trust that they will be able to keep me safe in the future. Weren't it the elves that found out about the spell we used against the Dark Lord's spirit when he possessed Quirrell?"

"Voldemort, Harry; only the Death Eaters call him the Dark Lord," the Headmaster corrected him gently.

"I'm sorry, Professor, but everyone in Slytherin says so," Harry replied, looking innocently at the old man.

"Very well, considering that you managed to take your Potions OWL at the end of your first year, the elves obviously taught you well," Dumbledore said thoughtfully.

Harry laughed. "Professor, Twinkle is the one, who teaches all the elves' children, and he is a brilliant teacher. However, everything concerning Potions I learned from Professor Snape. Cicero brought me to assist him when I was very small, and I've always liked to help the professor, even if he didn't know that I was here because I was invisible."

"So everyone here knew about it, and you kept it from me because you thought I'd send Harry back to the Dursleys?" Dumbledore queried.

"Albus, I've only known for six months, and I only found out because Harry gave himself away by something, and as far as I know Poppy and Severus also found out by chance, even if a few years earlier," McGonagall said soothingly, gently patting the Headmaster's arm.

Dumbledore sighed. "By the way, Albus, Harry suggested setting up a Quidditch tournament teachers versus elves. Would you be willing to join our teachers' team?" McGonagall continued, causing the Headmaster's eyes to twinkle happily.

"Of course. Even with 150 years I'm still in for a good Quidditch match. What are you going to play, Harry?"

"Seeker, sir, but I'll only play during practice, not in a match. I'll referee the game."

"A very good answer," Cicero commended the boy, causing everyone to laugh.

The adults decided to meet on the Quidditch pitch on Monday, Wednesday and Friday evenings and confirmed that Harry would be allowed to play a third Seeker in their practice, additionally to Cicero and Severus, who were going to play Seeker for their teams.

"There is still one point we need to discuss," Dumbledore said thoughtfully as he pulled a small bag of lemon drops out of his robe pockets, offering them to everyone. "The Dursleys are still listed as his guardians in the Muggle and the magical world, but if they don't even know the boy, we should hurriedly change this at least for the wizarding world, and even if three of you are his guardians in the elves' world, we still need a wizard or a witch to become his guardian in the magical world."

Twinkle cleared his throat and said, "Master Professor Dumbledore, Cicero and Malcolm have already seen to all these things when they adopted Harry, and they have updated the respective files at the Ministry of Magic."

"I'll show you the copy of the guardianship parchments," Malcolm offered and popped away as he noticed the disbelieving look on the teachers' faces.

_

* * *

tbc..._

_Thank you so much for your kind reviews. I hope you liked the chapter._

_I'm not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes or help me to correct them._

_All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	16. Summer Holidays

**16 – Summer Holidays**

Malcolm popped back within seconds, handing two parchments to Professor McGonagall. The first was the elves' certificate.

_Name: Harry Potter  
Date of Birth: Second day of the eighth lunar phase, 6480th cycle  
Parents: Misty, Cicero, Malcolm  
Place of Living: Hogwarts  
Instructor: Twinkle  
Status: Free_

The Gryffindor Head read the parchment in amazement, before she handed it to the Headmaster and turned to the second.

_Name: Harry Potter  
Date of Birth: 31st of July, 1980  
Mother: Lily Potter (Evans), deceased  
Father: James Potter, deceased  
Guardian: Severus Snape  
Godmothers: Poppy Pomfrey, Minerva McGonagall_

McGonagall let out a snort of disbelief. "Poppy, did you know that we're Harry's godmothers?"

The Mediwitch reached for the parchment and quickly handed it to the Potions Master. "Congratulations Severus. They made you Harry's guardian."

"I'm sorry Master Severus," Cicero blurted out, bowing deeply.

"Don't bow. It's all right," Severus said, smirking at Harry, who was smiling broadly.

'_Severus is my official guardian?_' Harry thought in amazement. '_That's so great, and he said it was all right. I'm really lucky_.' Harry was so engrossed in his happy thoughts that he didn't notice the frown on the Headmaster's face.

"Twinkle, have you been involved in this?" Dumbledore asked sternly.

"No, Master Professor Dumbledore," Twinkle replied firmly, bowing deeply.

"Malcolm and I have decided on everything, because we were sure that Mistress Minerva and Master Severus would agree with our decisions," Cicero explained in a soft voice, causing the two teachers to nod appreciatively.

"Harry, are you all right with me being your official guardian in the magical world?" Severus asked softly, giving the boy a sharp look.

"Of course, I like it very much, if you're all right with it, sir," Harry replied immediately, smiling. "Thank you so much for making so wonderful decisions for me, Cicero and Malcolm."

"I'm glad you're happy, little one," Cicero replied, pulling Harry in a light hug.

"Very well then, thanks for informing me. I'll see all of you at the Quidditch practice then," the Headmaster said and left the room through the fireplace.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

Harry liked to fly, but he wasn't as fond of it as Fred, George and Draco. However, he noticed soon that it was great fun to have his elves family and the teachers play Quidditch together, especially as he always managed to catch the Snitch before Severus and Cicero had even spotted the golden ball.

"It's a shame that you aren't willing to play in the House team," Severus told him one day. "You're the best Seeker I've ever seen. Draco's father is pestering me to allow Draco to play on the team, and I'll probably have to make him Seeker, since I can't afford getting on Mr. Malfoy's bad side. However, I'd prefer to make Draco Beater and have you as Seeker."

"That's true," Minerva agreed. "No one but Slytherin would be able to win the Quidditch cup during the next six years."

"I'm really sorry, but I don't want to play," Harry said in a small voice. "I'm glad for Draco though. He plays really well and he loves Quidditch."

The teachers and the elves had so much fun playing Quidditch together that they made up their minds to regularly continue their games once a week during the school year. After a longer discussion about the timing they settled on Saturday evening after curfew, knowing that only few students would notice them playing in the dark and that Harry was allowed to be out of his common room after curfew because of his position as student assistant.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

One day, when Harry was cleaning up the ingredients shelves in the Potions classroom for Severus to sort out ingredients that had become out of date, Severus came and motioned him to take a break and have tea together in his office.

"Harry, considering that in the magical world I'm your guardian, I thought that you should have your own room in my quarters. I know that the elves' quarters are your home, but whenever you want to stay here in your own room, you have the possibility. This will also make it possible for you to invite your friends during the summer holidays."

"Really?" Harry asked, looking eagerly at his guardian. "I'd love to see my friends."

"Why don't you invite them to come for your birthday and stay overnight? The boys could sleep in sleeping bags in your room, and the girls could use my guest room," Severus suggested, smirking at the smile that spread over Harry's face. As soon as they had finished their tea, he led the excited boy into his quarters and showed him the room, which the elves had made for him, causing Harry to glance around in absolute delight.

"This is absolutely wonderful," he blurted out, taking in the four poster bed, the large wardrobe, desk and bookshelf that were held in different shades of blue. "Thank you so much. I love it."

"Very well then; why don't you sit at the desk and write the invitations to your friends?" his guardian suggested, causing Harry to nod. "I'll do that as soon as I'm finished with the ingredients shelves." '_I'll probably need another two afternoons, but then it'll still be early enough to invite them. My birthday is two weeks ahead_,' he mused, unaware of the fact that he wouldn't be able to do anything for a fortnight.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

A few hours later, Harry woke up in the middle of the night when someone was shaking his shoulder. "Harry," Tony's voice penetrated his sleepy mind. "I don't feel good. Can you help me?"

With that Harry was fully awake. He sat up and pulled his best friend on his bed, making him lie down next to him. "What's wrong, Tony?" he asked in a soft voice, before he waved his hand over the boy to cast an overall diagnostic spell that Misty always used before casting more detailed spells.

"My head hurts terribly, and my throat is sore."

Harry pointed his forefinger at Tony's forehead, frowning. "I think you have the elves' fever, Tony. You have a very high fever, and your throat is infected badly. Let me take you to the hospital room, before the others catch it from you. The elves' fever is very contagious. My mum will give you a potion and make you feel much better."

"But I can't stay in the hospital room. I promised Professor Flitwick to...."

"Tony, you can't go to the castle and spread the elves' fever among the wizards. You'll need two days of absolute bed rest; otherwise it'll become much worse. If you tell me what you have to do for Professor Flitwick I can do it for you as soon as I finish my work for Professor Snape." With that he gently grabbed Tony's hot hand and popped to the hospital room with Tony in tow. "Mum, I think Tony has the elves' fever," he told Misty as he carefully woke her up.

Misty quickly checked on Harry's friend. "Your diagnosis was correct, sweetie. Well done. Now go back to bed. I hope you didn't catch the fever from Tony."

However, when Harry woke up a day later, he knew immediately that he was ill. He could hardly open his eyes, his ears felt as if they were filled with cotton wool, and his mouth and throat hurt from the small green pox that were quickly spreading. Feeling too bad to pop himself, he slowly made his way to the hospital room, where he scrambled into the bed next to Tony's, shivering violently.

"Oh no, Harry, are you sick as well?" Misty asked softly as she entered the room, taking in his flushed face.

"I don't feel good," Harry whispered, leaning into the cold touch as Misty laid her hand on his cheek.

"I believe that sweetie, especially as the elves' fever is accompanied by your usual Grindylow pox. I'm afraid it'll take a few days until you'll be fully back to health. I'll inform your teachers accordingly," Misty said, spelling a few potions into his system that made Harry fall asleep within seconds.

During the next few days, Harry remained very ill with a dangerously high fever. He barely registered that Cicero and Malcolm brought him get well cards from Severus, Poppy and Minerva. Severus even invented a new potion for his Grindylow pox, from which he made fruit drops, laced with raspberries that didn't do any harm to the efficiency. Misty coaxed him into trying one, and Harry noticed gratefully that it felt extremely soothing to his sore mouth, even if it was not a Healing potion but merely eased the symptoms.

"Mum, can you please thank the professor for me and tell him that it feels very good," he whispered, reaching for Misty's cool hand.

"Of course, sweetie, I'll send Cicero to tell Master Severus," Misty said softly, gently placing a cold towel on Harry's forehead. "Try to sleep for a while, Harry. I'll be here when you wake up."

A few hours later, Harry lazily opened his eyes, only to close them again quickly, wondering if he was delirious or if the scene that played out at the side of his bed was real.

_

* * *

tbc..._

_Thank you so much for your kind reviews. I hope you liked the chapter._

_I'm not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes or help me to correct them._

_All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	17. Surprise

**17 – Surprise**

Misty and Cicero were sitting on the edge of Harry's bed. Cicero had gently laid his arm around Misty's shoulders and was just pulling her into a soft kiss. "I love you, Misty," he whispered softly, causing Harry fall back to sleep with a huge smile playing on his lips.

During the following days, Harry could never observe such a scene again and often wondered if his fevered mind had been playing a joke on him. Unfortunately, his recovery took longer than expected, and Misty kept him in the hospital room for nearly two weeks.

One day when Harry woke up, Misty was sitting on the edge of his bed. "Good morning, sweetie. Happy Birthday!"

"Is it my birthday already?" Harry asked in disbelief, feeling very disappointed. '_I wanted to invite my friends for my birthday_,' he thought sadly as his mother pulled him in a bear hug.

"Harry, if you're feeling well enough, you may visit Master Severus today. He wants to see you. I placed a charm on you, which will prevent you from infecting anyone with the elves' fever or the Grindylow pox. However, you still have a few pox, and you're running a slight fever, so I don't want you to do anything strenuous."

"Thank you, Mum," Harry said happily, throwing Misty a grateful look when she exchanged his pyjamas with jeans and a T-shirt with a wave of her hand.

"Have fun and come back immediately if you feel worse. Tell Master Severus to call me if you need me," Misty instructed him firmly, and Harry promised to be careful, before he turned himself invisible and popped away.

When he arrived in a corner of the professor's living room, he noticed in amazement that all of his friends were sitting around the table that was decorated with an enormous birthday cake. Harry quickly turned himself visible and hesitantly stepped out of the corner in order not to startle everyone.

"Harry!" The Weasley twins were the first to notice him, causing everyone to sing the birthday song for him, while the twins pulled Harry onto the sofa and sat on both sides of him.

"Did Professor Snape invite you?" Harry asked in surprise, and everyone laughed.

"Yes Harry," Hermione replied, smiling. "He sent us an invitation for your birthday party here in his quarters but told us that you might be absent because you were ill. I'm glad you're able to attend, but could you perhaps explain why it was Professor Snape who invited us? Because he is your Head of House?"

Harry told his friends everything about the guardianship matters, and the friends spent the whole morning talking about several matters, until Severus entered the room and told everyone to head to the Great Hall for lunch.

"One moment please, sir," Draco spoke up. "I wanted to ask you and the others something. Does any of you know anything about Horcruxes? I think my father is up to something. He has been making secret plans with some of his strange friends, and when I managed to eavesdrop I heard that they were talking about Horcruxes and Hogwarts, but I couldn't hear much more."

The room remained absolutely quiet for a moment, before Severus spoke up thoughtfully. "I think I've heard something about it, but I'm not sure. We'll have to do some research in the library."

"We can spend the afternoon in the library," Hermione suggested.

"No," Severus replied firmly. "Thank you for warning us, Draco. Please inform me if you hear anything more. I will do some research, into which I'll also involve the Headmaster. I want you to enjoy your afternoon, and Harry does not look as if he was in a condition to do research in the library today."

Harry indeed didn't feel overly well, and the friends just spent the afternoon in Harry's room talking about their holidays and making plans for the new school year.

"Draco, do you have any idea what your father is up to?" Harry queried, leaning his head against the wall in exhaustion.

"I don't know, but he said something about a diary containing a Horcrux that he intended to get to Hogwarts by the beginning of the school year," Draco replied thoughtfully.

"Why don't you go to the library and do some research?" Harry suggested, thinking, '_I'd love to be on my own and rest for a while, especially since they're all going to stay overnight_.'

"Maybe you should take a nap, Harry," Hermione spoke up, eyeing him in concern.

Millicent, who was sitting next to Harry on his bed, leaned over, and her delicate, cool hand found its way to his forehead. "Oh my, you're still very warm," she stated and turned to the others. "You can go to the library and try to find something out. I'll stay with Harry," she offered.

Apparently noticing that Harry could need some rest, everyone nodded their understanding, and the small group headed to the library, while Millicent made Harry lie down and gently cooled his hot forehead with a cold towel, noticing in surprise how quickly his breathing evened out. As soon as he was fast asleep, she went to fetch Severus.

Upon hearing that everyone else had gone to the library, Severus' expression became stern. "In the meantime, I had a conversation with the Headmaster, and I'm afraid that they won't find anything about Horcruxes in the library," he told the girl. "Maybe the elves will be able to find out something." '_Considering that it was the elves who found out how to get rid of the Dark Lord's spirit, it might be possible_,' he thought and called Cicero.

"Master Severus, I will speak with Malcolm, Twinkle and a few other elves. We'll try to find something in our huge library. Harry can help as well when he feels better." He glanced at the sleeping child. "Master Severus, shall I ask Misty to come and check on him?"

"I don't think that it's necessary. I just spelled a fever reducer into his system, but if he doesn't feel better after his nap, I shall call her," Severus replied, contentedly observing how Millicent gently bathed Harry's flushed face with the towel that she had just wetted again.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

As Severus had predicted after his conversation with the Headmaster, who had told him that he had tried to find out something about Horcruxes ever since Voldemort's spirit had possessed Professor Quirrell, Harry's friends didn't find any information in the library.

The elves thoroughly searched their own library and after his recovery, a few days after his birthday, Harry joined his elf parents in their research every evening. However, even after skimming each single book of the 50,000 books in the elves' library at Hogwarts, they still had not made the slightest progress.

"There is only one elves' library that is bigger than the one here," Cicero told Severus. "It holds 253,753 books. Twinkle, Malcolm, Misty and I would like to ask to be allowed to spend one week on the Isle of Elves in order to search the library for information on the Horcruxes. A group of elder elves already offered to help with our research. Will I be allowed to leave, and may we take Harry with us, Master Severus?" Cicero asked politely, bowing deeply for once.

"You may, and you need not ask me if you may take Harry with you, considering that you are his guardian as well. However, I wish to be informed about his whereabouts at any time."

"Yes of course, Master Severus," Cicero promised. "Thank you so much."

"Do you want me to accompany you?" Severus queried, quirking an eyebrow.

"Thank you so much, Master Severus, but you won't be able to access the Isle of Elves. Only elves can get onto the island. It is a small island near the west coast of Ireland by the way."

"But Harry is one hundred percent human," Severus replied in surprise.

"Yes, but we have an elven birth certificate with elves as his parents. It won't be a problem for him. And Misty believes that the fresh air at the seaside will be good for him."

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

To Harry's absolute delight, Nina and Tony were allowed to accompany the group. At first, the elves on the island eyed him in disbelief; however, upon noticing that he behaved like an elf and had elves as parents, everyone soon accepted him as one of their own.

The small group stayed in the house of Misty's mother, Anastasia, the Healer. She lived in a stone house that was surrounded by a stone wall like all the houses on the island.

While the Hogwarts elves and their helpers spent the whole day in the library, Misty only allowed Harry to help two hours each in the morning and in the afternoon. At all other times Nina and Tony were instructed to take him out to the beach, where the three friends could relax and play as they wanted. To Harry's surprise, the weather was always good. It was sunny; however, the sun was not too intensive but felt good on his skin, and the temperature remained fairly constant, neither too hot nor too cold. '_The whole island must be charmed_," Harry thought in amazement. '_This is like a paradise_.'

It was on the morning of their return to Hogwarts that the elder elves approached the group with grave expressions on their faces.

_

* * *

tbc..._

_Thank you so much for your kind comments and sorry for the delay!_

_I'm not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes or help me to correct them._

_All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	18. Horcruxes

**18 – Horcruxes**

The older elves told the group from Hogwarts that they had found information about Horcruxes and handed them a copy of the book, which they had discovered in the library. Harry didn't fully understand the explanation; however, he noticed in surprise that his usually calm parents seemed to be very upset about something. To the adults, it was evident that it was not sufficient to know the meaning of the Horcruxes, but that they had to search for a way to get rid of them. The elves urgently conferred what to do, since Twinkle, Malcolm, Cicero and Misty were not free elves and had to return to Hogwarts, because they had only asked for one week at the Isle of Elves. Nina and Tony, however, were only twelve years old and only had to obey to Twinkle.

The three children begged the adults to allow them to remain on the island for another week, and knowing that they would be in good hands with Anastasia, the adults readily agreed. Harry was not sure if he really liked Anastasia, because she seemed to be watching him like a hawk. '_Probably because Misty told her about my problem with the grindylow pox_,' Harry thought in annoyance. However, to his relief, the week passed uneventfully, and he managed to remain healthy until Misty and Twinkle arrived to take them back to Hogwarts. Unfortunately, they hadn't been able to find any more information about Horcruxes.

"We will continue the research," the elder elves promised, and Twinkle asked them to visit him at Hogwarts, so that he could introduce them to the Headmaster in order to work together on the matter. With that, the small group returned to Hogwarts.

Back at Hogwarts, Harry couldn't wait for his friends to return to the castle. Fortunately, only five days of holidays were left, and since he had finished all of his summer assignments, he was allowed to help Severus in the potions lab as much as he wanted. It was on the last day of the holidays that he decided to ask his human guardian a question that had been bothering him ever since his visit to the Isle of Elves.

"Severus, does this Horcrux story have anything to do with me?" he asked hesitantly, while he carefully sliced half a dozen frog eggs.

"And why would that be?" Severus queried, quirking an eyebrow.

"I'm not sure, but whenever they speak about them, they give me pitying looks. I don't know," Harry replied unsurely.

"Harry, as you experienced during your last school year, you are connected to the Dark Lord through your scar. However, I'm afraid that is the only thing I can tell you, because the Headmaster forbade me to speak about the matter with you," he said thoughtfully.

Seeing that Harry was not pleased with his reply at all, he put the potion that he was just brewing under a stasis charm and called Cicero. "The Headmaster thinks that Harry is too young to know about the prophecy; however, I disagree," he told his house-elf.

Cicero bowed slightly into Severus' direction and turned to Harry to inform him about the prophecy, reciting the words, which Severus had told him many months ago.

"But why does it have to be me?" Harry asked, terrified.

"Because he already marked you," Severus said in a soft voice, gently pulling Harry's fringe up to look at the scar.

"That's true," Harry replied in shock. "But what am I supposed to do?"

Severus thoughtfully ran a hand through his hair. "I'm not sure," he admitted calmly; "however, I can imagine that you already took care of that when you helped to destroy his spirit during the last school year. The problem now is to find and take care of the Horcruxes, but I do not know if this necessarily involves you."

"Okay," Harry said barely audibly. "I hope it won't."

"We all hope so, Harry," Cicero threw in and gently patted Harry's shoulder.

Harry smiled in spite of the fact that he felt miserable at the information he had just heard. '_Cicero is the only of the elves, who can reach up to pat my shoulder. He's much taller than everyone else_,' he thought in amusement.

"We must all keep our eyes open in case Mr. Malfoy manages to smuggle the diary into Hogwarts like Draco warned us," Severus said quietly. "Other than that we can only hope that the elder elves find some information on how to get rid of them. Professor Dumbledore is researching the matter as well."

All of a sudden, they heard the fireplace in the living room flare. Cicero excused himself, and Severus and Harry stepped over into the living room after Severus cast a refreshing charm on the ingredients that were still lying around in the lab. To their surprise it was Draco who stepped out of the fireplace.

"I'm sorry to intrude," Draco said, and Harry noticed that he seemed to be uncharacteristically pale. "The twins apparently told their father about my warning with the Horcruxes, and two weeks ago, the Ministry sent a large group from Law Enforcement and Aurors to Malfoy Manor. They searched the dungeons and took lots of things with them, and this morning they came back and arrested my father. I don't know if they took him to Azkaban or just to the Ministry. Mother is crying, but she doesn't talk to me." He took a sip from the offered tea and continued, "I don't care about my father. He deserves everything he'll get, but I'm worried about mother. Uncle Sev, can you go and speak with her, please? I'm sure she'll listen to you."

Severus let out a long sigh. "I shall go and speak with Narcissa," he said finally. "Draco, will you stay with Harry or come with me? Harry, do you want to come as well?"

Harry shook his head. He was still shocked about the earlier revelations. "No, I'm going to finish the potion," he replied quietly. Seeing Severus nod his agreement, he returned to the lab and busied himself brewing, trying to push all thoughts about the prophecy, Horcruxes and Mr. Malfroy away. Fortunately, he managed to concentrate enough to flawlessly finish the potion, and he had just cleaned up the lab, when Severus returned from the Malfoys.

"Will Draco be all right?" Harry asked in concern.

"He will be all right. As you probably know, he didn't overly like his father and he despised him for his support of the Dark Lord. Nevertheless, he is his father, and Draco is also worried about his mother, who is depressed about the whole matter, especially since Draco will be returning to Hogwarts tomorrow. Speaking about the beginning of the school year, do you want me to take you to King's Cross in the morning, or will you just pop there?"

Harry threw the professor an absentminded look. In fact, he hadn't been feeling overly well the whole day, and the shocking news he had received had caused his mouth to become sore again. "Do I have to take the Hogwarts Express? Or may I perhaps meet the others in Hogsmeade?"

Severus gave Harry a sharp look. "Are you feeling all right, Harry?" he asked in concern.

"Yes sir," Harry replied, before he hesitantly admitted, "My mouth is a bit sore though." '_At least Severus won't make a fuss about it_,' he thought and asked, "Sir, may I brew the potion for the drops, which you made for me at the beginning of the holidays?"

Severus stepped over to one of the shelves and fetched a large phial. "Do you want it as a potion or as drops?" he queried, giving the boy an assessing look, before he placed his slender hand on Harry's forehead.

'_Feels good_,' Harry thought, unconsciously leaning into the touch. "I don't mind. Your potion is brilliant, but I loved the drops as well."

Severus placed the phial on the table. "Let me see. Open up please." He lit his wand and closely examined Harry's mouth. "It's not too bad yet, but in order to get it in grip before it spreads everywhere, I'd suggest the potion." He handed the boy a goblet full of the potion.

"That's much better, sir. Thank you," Harry said gratefully.

"If you don't feel well tomorrow, you can mix up with the other students at dinner," Severus said gently. "Now we're going to finish up here for today. I suggest that you join me in the living room and rest or spend the afternoon with your elf friends."

"They both have to work at this time," Harry replied softly. "I'll meet with them in the evening. Excuse me, sir... Um... Could we speak about the Horcruxes once more?"

Severus agreed, and the two wizards spent the rest of the afternoon talking about Horcruxes and about the upcoming school year. Finally, Severus glanced at his wrist watch. "It's already dinner time," he said. "I suggest that you join us for dinner in the Great Hall, if you feel well enough. You haven't met Professor Quirrell since his return to Hogwarts, have you?"

"No," Harry replied, feeling slightly anxious of meeting the professor, who had tried to kill him during the last school year, when he had been possessed by Voldemort's spirit. He slowly let his tongue wander over the still slightly sore spots in his mouth and unsurely looked at his guardian.

_

* * *

tbc..._

_Thank you so much for your kind comments!_

_I'm not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes. All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	19. Shocking Revelations

**19 – Shocking Revelations**

"Don't worry, Harry. Professor Quirrell has been at St. Mungo's for three months. He has been obliviated about everything involving the time while he was possessed by the Dark Lord and is said to be completely recovered," Severus explained gently. "You don't have to attend dinner though, if you don't feel well or prefer to meet him in class for the first time. We can have dinner here together, or you can return to the elves' quarters. It's up to you."

"Thank you," Harry replied gratefully. "No, I'll attend dinner in the Great Hall. I prefer being together with you when I meet him for the first time after all that happened."

Together the two wizards walked to the Great Hall, and Harry quickly slipped into the offered seat between Minerva and Severus. Professor Quirrell was the last to arrive and took the remaining seat at the other side of the table. Harry sighed in relief upon noticing that his scar didn't hurt anymore with the professor nearby. Still he held his breath when the Headmaster introduced him to the Defence teacher, explaining that he was living at Hogwarts because Severus was his guardian.

'_I must be friendly to him; he doesn't know me, and he doesn't remember anything_,' Harry told himself, feeling grateful towards Professor Dumbledore, who apparently hadn't told anyone about his connection to the elves.

"Harry Potter?" the Defence teacher asked in surprise. "You must be very good in my class, Mr. Potter."

'_He's not stuttering anymore_,' Harry realised as he heard himself reply, "No sir, unfortunately not." As much as he had enjoyed his holidays at the Isle of Elves, he knew that he should have spent the time to practise wand magic, although Minerva and Severus had both reassured him that it had been good for him to have holidays for once.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

In the morning, Malcolm asked Harry to help him and Cicero with the preparations for the Gryffindor and Slytherin common rooms and dormitories, since several of the house-elves that were responsible for the Houses were sick. Harry happily agreed. He loved to help the elves, and he found it interesting to see his own House from both sides, that of the elves, who used to make everything as nice and perfect as possible for the students, and that of the students, who took everything for granted. After having lunch together with the elves, he popped himself into his own room in Severus' quarters. He found the professor hunched over the Slytherin time tables in his office.

"Hello Severus," he hesitantly greeted the man. "Is there anything I could do to help you?"

"Hello Harry. I wondered where you were. How are you?" Severus replied in concern, looking up from his work to give the boy a piercing look.

"The elves kept me busy arranging everything in Gryffindor and Slytherin. I'm fine, only a bit tired," Harry admitted in a soft voice.

"Well, if you're sure that you don't want to take a nap, you can help me with the time tables. I intend to place them into the respective rooms tonight instead of handing them over at breakfast tomorrow. What do you think, Harry?"

"I think that's a very good idea and makes breakfast on the first morning much less stressful," Harry said warmly and took a seat at the opposite side of the professor's desk to help with the time tables.

Severus handed the boy a small pile of parchments and instructed him what to do, before he placed a small bowl with drops in front of him. "The drops you wanted," he explained.

"Thank you so much," Harry said gratefully. '_Just what I needed_,' he thought as he sucked on the soothing sweet in relief, unaware of the fact that his guardian was observing him in concern as he popped a drop into his mouth right away. '_I just hope I won't get sick now_,' he thought, noticing that the drops only helped so much and that his head began to hurt.

When Harry handed Severus the completed time tables, he asked, "Do you want me to put them into the rooms right away, sir?"

Severus shot him a sharp glance, before he queried, "How long will it take you to distribute them?"

"Two minutes," Harry replied in surprise. "Why, sir?"

"Because I believe that you're in dire need of some rest," Severus replied sternly as he quickly extended a hand to feel Harry's forehead.

"It's not a big deal, sir," Harry replied and quickly popped away with the parchments, turning himself invisible as he went. He popped himself from one room into the next, magically placing the appropriate parchments on the respective night tables. Two minutes later he was back. "Everything is done, sir. When do we have to leave for Hogsmeade?"

"I'm not sure if I should take you with me," the professor said and pulled Harry with him through the connecting door to his quarters. He motioned for him to sit on the sofa and sat next to him. "Open up," he instructed the boy and lit his wand to examine the grindylow pox, before he coaxed a thermometer into Harry's sore mouth, making the boy cringe and shiver at the cold touch. "I'm sorry, Harry, but either you let me check on you or I have to call Misty."

Harry quickly shook his head. '_Mum is much too protective and she'd only make a fuss_,' he thought and glanced up in shock when all of a sudden the fireplace flared. '_I don't want anyone to see me like this, but I can't take that annoying thing without making Severus angry_,' he thought feverishly and did the first thing that came into his mind. He made himself invisible, just when the Headmaster stepped out of the fireplace.

"Hello Severus," he said in a grave voice, and Harry noticed that his eyes were not twinkling as usual. "I did not expect to see you relaxing. Is everything all right?"

"Yes, of course. Harry helped me with my time tables and even distributed them in the rooms, so that I just sat down here to think for a moment. Can I help you with something?"

The Headmaster let out a long sigh, before he replied, "The elder elves have contacted me. They found a way to summon and destroy the Horcruxes. However, they need humans to help them destroy them, because they are human objects, and since it affords much magic, we decided to ask you and Minerva for help, maybe also Harry."

"Of course, Albus. That is no problem," Severus agreed quickly.

"In fact, I fear that there might be a problem, Severus," the Headmaster said thoughtfully. "I'm not sure if I'm right of course, but there is a slight possibility that Harry might be a Horcrux as well."

"Harry?" Severus breathed in shock.

Harry nearly chocked and quickly pulled the thermometer out that fortunately chose that instant to beep. '_Thank Merlin no one can hear it as long as I'm touching it_,' Harry thought, listening terrified to the teachers' conversation.

"What exactly does that mean, Headmaster?" Severus queried sharply.

"Where is Harry? Maybe it would be fortunate to speak with him at the same time," Dumbledore suggested.

"Harry is slightly under the weather and I sent him to bed," Severus replied pointedly, sensing from a soft pop right next to him that Harry obediently popped away.

Harry popped into his own room and scrambled into bed, placing the thermometer on the night table. His thoughts went haywire and he hoped that the professors would come and explain everything to him soon. To his relief, it took only a minute, before the two wizards entered the room.

"Is it all right to disturb you for a moment, Harry?" Dumbledore enquired kindly, while Severus checked the thermometer.

"Of course," Harry replied and sat up, leaning his achy head against the wall.

The Headmaster quickly explained about the Horcruxes and that he feared that one piece of Voldemort's soul could also be buried within Harry. "Harry, don't be afraid. The elves and we will act very carefully in order not to harm you."

"What exactly is your plan, Albus?" Severus asked sharply, causing the Headmaster to slowly explain how they had agreed that the Headmaster and one of the elder elves should carefully cast a spell at Harry's scar, while Minerva or Severus together with another elf had to cast a counter spell at the boy, so that only the dark part connected to his scar would be affected by the spell.

"What could be the consequences?" Severus queried.

"In the worst case, his heart or other parts of his body could become affected, which mean weakened, but he will survive. If we didn't cast these spells at him, before casting the general spell at all Horcruxes, he would die," the Headmaster replied gravely. "How sick is Harry? Will we be able to cast the spell tonight?"

"It's not so bad," Harry replied quickly, although he felt worse by the minute, knowing that the grindylow pox always became worse when he made himself upset.

"Harry is feeling very unwell and is running a slight fever," Severus replied sternly.

"Severus, it's all right; I'd love to get over with it right away, if possible before everyone comes back tonight," Harry said pleadingly.

"In that case we will call your mother and make her check on you," Severus replied, raising an eyebrow. Seeing Harry nod, he called Misty.

The small elf quickly checked on Harry and let a huge amount of Healing magic flow into his body. "Master Severus, Harry will be fine. It's only a cold in combination with the grindylow pox, but he should feel better now. I'd appreciate if I was allowed to be with him when the spell is cast though."

"Of course, Misty," the Headmaster agreed gently. "We wanted to ask you to be present anyway. If Harry is ready, I suggest that we move into my office, where the elder elves are still waiting."

Twenty minutes later, Harry, Severus, Minerva, the Headmaster, three elder elves and Harry's elf parents were assembled in the round office, and the elder elves explained in detail what each of them had to do. First of all, Dumbledore and one of the elder elves were going to cast the spell on Harry in combination with the counter spell that would be cast by Minerva and Malcolm.

"Harry, are you ready?" Dumbledore asked gently.

"Yes," Harry replied hesitantly and took the offered seat on the sofa, noticing in relief that Misty sat next to him, until the elder elves motioned for her to back up a little.

"Don't worry, little one, my Healing magic works over quite a distance," Misty whispered to Harry, making him chuckle.

"Thank you, Mum. Thank you for being here with me," he whispered back gratefully. When the Headmaster and the elder elf trained their wands at him, he heard Severus' voice penetrate his mind. 'Look at me, Harry. I'll be here with you the whole time.' Harry gratefully looked up, seeing that the Potions Master was standing at the opposite side of the room, just so that he could see him when he looked straight ahead. "Now don't move," the Headmaster instructed him, and Harry concentrated on looking at his guardian, until all of a sudden his scar erupted in pain and the world turned black.

_

* * *

tbc..._

_Thank you so much for your kind comments!_

_I'm not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes. All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	20. Coma

**20 - Coma**

When Harry opened his eyes, he found himself in a very bright room. '_This is one of the small rooms behind the hospital wing_,' he realised, knowing his surroundings very well. Nina and Misty were sitting on the edge of his bed, talking in hushed voices. He wanted to speak with them, tell them that he was awake, since they apparently didn't notice that he had woken up; however, he wasn't able to speak. As much as he tried to address the elves, his voice just didn't obey. '_Why can't I speak?_' he wondered, terrified. After a few tries, he felt that his head began to hurt and tiredly decided to go back to sleep.

The next time he woke up, Hermione and Millicent were with him. They were talking about their Defence class with Professor Quirrell. '_When did we have class with Quirrell?_' Harry wondered, before he realised, '_I must have missed the first class. Oh no! I feel fine, and I want to attend classes. The school year has already begun. I wonder how long Aunt Poppy kept me here_.' He attempted to slowly move his legs over the edge of his bed, but they wouldn't obey. He tried to pop himself home to no avail.

"I just hope Harry will wake up and be all right soon," Hermione said sadly, looking at him in obvious concern.

"I'm fine, Mione. What's wrong?" Harry tried to ask in vain, and Hermione couldn't only not hear him; she didn't even notice that he was awake.

Every time Harry woke up, someone was with him. However, everyone seemed to think that he was asleep. Sometimes, Misty and Cicero were there, cuddling with each other. '_I love for them to be together. They're such a sweet couple_,' Harry thought happily, only feeling sad that he couldn't speak to them to congratulate. At other times, his classmates were there, but he soon noticed that it was Severus, who regularly spent many hours with him during the night. Apparently, the professor was unaware of the fact that Harry could hear everything, because he often told him about Lily, Harry's mother, who had been his best friend during their childhood, and about their time at Hogwarts.

All of his friends and family seemed to assume that he wasn't able to understand anything. Neville told him about his parents, who were at St. Mungo's, Hermione spoke about the fact that he was the first real friend she had, and Misty and Cicero admitted that they loved each other but didn't find the courage yet to ask Poppy and Severus if they would be allowed to marry.

One day, Severus was at Harry's side when it was still light, and he seemed to be more talkative than normally.

'Did Mum really say that?' Harry once asked Severus, unaware that due to his inability to voice anything, the question was transmitted as a thought.

'Harry, are you awake?' Severus thought back in surprise. 'You just used telepathy, didn't you?'

'Telepathy? Yes, I'm awake, but I can't speak nor move,' Harry thought to his guardian.

'Oh Harry, I'm so glad that we at least can communicate with you. That's the best Christmas present I could have wished for.'

Harry looked at the professor in shock. 'Christmas?'

'It's Christmas day,' Severus informed him. 'You have been in a coma now for nearly four months.'

'But I'm awake,' Harry replied, 'and I have been for quite some time.'

'You're awake?' Severus gasped. 'How are you feeling? Are you in pain?'

'No. Sometimes, but it always goes away eventually.'

Severus called Misty, who waved her hand over Harry and sighed. "Well, since a few weeks ago he is not in a deep coma anymore but in a light coma. However, he is still in a coma, and I have no idea when he is going to wake up. I'm sorry, Master Severus."

"Misty, is there anything we can do to wake him up, considering that we can communicate with him?" Severus queried, slowly running his right hand through his hair. He looked at Harry. "Harry, can you hear what we say?"

'Yes, but I can't talk too much. My head hurts.' Severus translated for Misty, who pulled Harry into a bear hug.

Harry sighed contentedly as he felt his mother's healing magic cure the headache; however, not a single sound left his lips.

"Be with him and talk to him as much as possible," Misty finally replied to Severus. "That's the only way, in which you can help him. That is also the reason why Poppy is allowing his friends to visit whenever they can. He needs as much contact with his normal surroundings as he can get. You can also try physical contact. Touch his face or squeeze his hands, and maybe once he will react."

From that time onwards, Severus began to speak to Harry about potions ingredients. He knew when Harry was awake, because the boy always thought a small 'Hi' to him when he saw him. Sometimes, he also told him about his newest research, which was to find a potion for lycanthropy. He explained that he had charmed several rats to show the features of lycanthropy, so that he could test his inventions on them. From time to time he asked Harry for his opinion, and Harry tried to come up with useful ideas.

'What about using two spoonfuls of new moon dew? Insert them after the wormwood and stir a few times clockwise and then anti-clockwise. I'm not sure,' Harry thought to Severus in excitement.

"That might work," Severus said thoughtfully. "In fact, it's a brilliant idea, and I believe that I have some new moon dew in store. Will you excuse me for an hour? I have the potion in several cauldrons at several stages, so that I can try your version quickly."

'Of course, Severus. Good luck,' Harry thought back and decided to take a nap. He woke up later, when he felt someone forcefully squeeze his hand. 'Severus,' he thought without even opening his eyes, not even realising that he was suddenly able to feel the man's touch and sense his distinctive smell of herbs and potions.

"Harry, it worked!" Severus said, sounding uncharacteristically excited. "Of course I don't know if it is a permanent cure, but I called Misty and Poppy, and both of them couldn't find any traces of lycanthropy."

'Oh Severus, I'm so happy for you. I really hope it works out,' Harry thought back excitedly.

"Harry!" Severus suddenly exclaimed.

'Yes sir?'

"Your hand! Look at your hand. It's moving!"

Harry glanced at his left hand. Severus once again squeezed his hand, and Harry replied to the touch, only now realising that his hand really moved. He tried to move his arm, but it didn't work. 'I can't move anything else,' he informed his guardian, suddenly feeling very disappointed.

"It's all right, Harry. Everything will come back with time, and even the slightest movement is a great progress," Severus said softly, gently patting his hand.

It was on Valentine's Day that Nina lay next to him on the bed and told him, "Happy Valentine's Day, Harry. Please wake up soon. I love you, and I miss you terribly. Even if you're in Slytherin, we can somehow meet every day. Wake up please." With that she pressed a kiss onto his cheek and curled up next to him, nestling into his arm.

"Love you too," Harry mumbled sleepily, causing Nina to jerk upwards.

"Harry! Are you awake?" she asked in excitement, causing a small smile to play on Harry's lips.

"Misty, Misty, come quickly," Nina shouted, and Misty popped into the room in a blink. "Harry spoke to me and he smiles," she said enthusiastically.

Misty waved her hand at her son and smiled as well. "Yes Misty, he is not in a coma anymore; he's only asleep. Just stay here and talk to him quietly; maybe he'll wake up soon."

"Yes Misty, sorry Misty," Nina replied and once more nestled into Harry's arm.

Harry only woke up a few hours later due to a huge commotion going on in the corridor that led from Poppy's office to his room.

"Minister, you cannot see Mr. Potter at this time," he heard Poppy say in a very upset voice.

"I don't care if Mr. Potter is sick. I want to see him now!" a voice, which Harry didn't know, replied, sounding equally angry.

_

* * *

tbc..._

_Thank you so much for your kind comments!_

_I'm not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes. All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	21. The Order of Merlin

**21 – The Order of Merlin**

Harry lazily opened his eyes, finding that he could move his limbs for the first time in ages. Nina was lying in his arms, fast asleep.

"Nina," Harry said, causing the small elf to jerk awake.

"Harry! I'm so glad to have you back," she said happily as she hurriedly brought herself into a sitting position.

"Shhh," Harry whispered, "someone is outside and wants to see me. Aunt Poppy sounds very angry. Let's just pop home."

"You pop home right into your bed in the dormitory," Nina instructed him firmly, "and I'll inform Mistress Poppy."

Harry agreed and popped himself away, not a second too early, since the Minister of Magic chose that very instant to enter the small bedroom, his wand trained at the Healer. Nina looked at the scene in horror, while she feverishly searched her mind for an action to take. Not daring to pop into the Headmaster's office, she popped herself straight into Severus' classroom, where the Potions Master was just teaching a class. Severus hurriedly dismissed his students and called Twinkle and Malcolm, instructing them to pop Dumbledore and McGonagall to the hospital wing, before he asked Nina to take him there.

An instant later, the three professors entered the small bedroom, in which Minister Fudge was throwing a temper tantrum, threatening Poppy to send her to Azkaban if she didn't allow him to see Harry.

"Minister, as I already told you, I have no idea where he is," Poppy replied firmly, sighing in relief when her colleagues came through the door.

"Minister Fudge," Dumbledore said in a calm but firm voice, "in my position as the Head of the Wizengamot, I herewith deny you the access to Hogwarts. You are not welcome here anymore. Leave instantly."

"But Dumbledore," Fudge objected, "you can't do that."

"I can and I will," Dumbledore replied firmly, "and if you ever attempt to get to Harry again, you'll have been Minister for the longest time. Good bye, Cornelius." With that he pulled the upset Minister out of the room.

"That was impressive," Severus said dryly. "However, where is Harry?"

Nina quickly filled the adults in, making a collective frown appear on their faces. Poppy was the first to speak up. "Well, I trust Misty to look after him. She is a fantastic Healer and Harry's adoptive mother after all. Maybe if he stays in the elves' quarters for the time being, Twinkle, Cicero and Malcolm can teach him everything that he missed."

"That's a good idea," Minerva agreed warmly. "I'll provide Malcolm with the material. Harry has a lot to catch up if he wants to finish his second year this summer."

HP

During the following months, his guardians made him study everything that he had missed while being in the coma. Only in time for dinner did they allow him to pop into the humans' part of the castle and join his House mates. Sometimes, Harry spent the evenings in the second years' study room to study and talk with his friends; at other times, he chose the quiet of Severus' private lab to assist the Potions Master.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

It was a few weeks before the end of the school year that Dumbledore stepped through the fireplace when Severus and Harry were just sitting in the living room, discussing a potion that they were going to invent.

"I'm sorry to disturb you, my boys," the Headmaster apologized, taking the offered seat. "Only now I was informed why Minister Fudge wanted to see Harry a few months ago. In fact, he wanted to speak with both of you, because the two of you have been awarded the Order of Merlin first class for your wolfscure potion."

"Headmaster, that must be a mistake," Harry countered immediately. "I did not invent anything. It was only Professor Snape, who developed the wolfscure."

Severus smirked. "No Harry; do you remember that I told you that you gave me the essential suggestions for the success?" he asked in his soft, baritone voice. "Anyway, I published the potion under both our names. I am sorry; I should have told you again after you were awake, but I thought you knew about it."

Harry rolled his eyes. "I didn't do anything," he protested, sounding slightly annoyed.

"Harry," the Headmaster threw in sternly, "I appreciate very much that Professor Snape brought your name in as well, and you should accept the Order of Merlin, not only because it is doted with one million Galleons. Anyway, there will be a ceremony at the Ministry of Magic on Saturday evening, and I'd recommend that both of you attend and receive the Order of Merlin."

"Professor," Harry responded thoughtfully, "I'll only attend under one condition." Seeing that the two professors looked at him with interest, he explained how he intended to spend the money, causing the Headmaster to let out a long sigh.

"This is more difficult and complex than you might imagine, Harry," Dumbledore replied slowly.

"Well then I won't attend," Harry said quickly, quirking an eyebrow at Severus.

"Albus, I'm not going to go there alone," the Potions Master spoke up, smirking. "Actually, I believe that Harry's idea is very well thought through and reasonable."

The Headmaster, who seemed to become more unnerved by the minute, rose from his chair. "Very well then, yes Harry, you have my permission. Now I trust that both of you will attend the party on Saturday evening."

HP

On Saturday evening, Misty insisted that Harry had to wear the green dress robes, which other elves had made for him for this occasion. '_I really look as if I was wearing a dress_,' Harry mused, feeling very uncomfortable in his outfit, before he popped himself into Severus' quarters and noticed that Severus was equally dressed up, although his robes were black as usual.

"Very well, Harry," Severus said gently, "shall we take the Floo, or do you wish to pop us to the Ministry?"

Harry decided to pop them, glad that his guardian didn't have any difficulties with his elven method of travel. They arrived near the public fireplace in the Ministry and just followed everyone else to a huge hall.

"Why are so many people here?" he whispered to Severus, terrified.

"I have no idea, Harry," Severus responded. "Maybe others are going to receive the Order of Merlin as well."

However, the two wizards realised soon that the crowd had only assembled to thank them. As the Minister, who was sharing a table with Severus and Harry, explained, around three hundred former werewolves were gathered to see the Potions Masters, who had cured them and allowed them to work and to live in freedom just like everyone else.

Severus merely inclined his head, while Harry shrugged and said, "You're welcome. We're glad that we could help, although I didn't really do anything. It was Professor Snape, who developed the wolfscure."

The Minister officially awarded them the Order of Merlin, handing each of them a golden medal, which was decorated with a fire phoenix like Fawkes and the inscription 'Order of Merlin First Class'. The plate felt very heavy, and Harry wondered if it was real gold plates that had been used for the medal. However, before he could quietly ask Severus, dinner began, and Fudge introduced the lady in the green one-piece, who was sitting next to him, to Severus and Harry as Ms. Skeeter from the Daily Prophet.

"Mr. Potter, how does it feel to be the youngest wizard, who has ever received the Order of Merlin?" Skeeter queried, while a light green quill automatically moved over a parchment next to her plate.

Harry merely shrugged as he guided a fork full of carrots into his mouth.

"But you must be very proud of yourself," Skeeter continued, apparently disappointed because of his lack of reaction. "Not many children of your age have received any award at all."

"I didn't want it," Harry replied darkly. "It was forced on me by the Minister for something, which I didn't even do. As I said earlier, it's Professor Snape, who invented the potion and cured the werewolves. I merely shared a tiny idea with him, nothing more."

"Ah, you're so sweet and humble," Skeeter cheered, trying to move closer to Harry, who backed up, leaning against Severus' robes.

"Very well then, a boy of your age will have many ideas how to spend one million Galleons. Will you enlighten us?"

Whilst inwardly rolling his eyes in annoyance, Harry smirked. '_Oh yeah, I'll tell you, but you won't like it at all_,' he thought, swallowing a mouthful of curry chicken, before he set to speak.

_tbc..._

_Thank you so much for your kind comments!_

_I'm not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes. All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	22. The Execution Moor

**22 – The Execution Moor**

"I'm going to use the money for a scholarship, which will be awarded to two elves each year, so that they can attend Hogwarts as students," Harry announced, causing Skeeter's green quill to do a flip flop over her parchment. Totally annoyed with the performance of her quill, he decided to not reveal anything further of his plan. Instead, he swiftly finished his dinner and looked at Severus in expectation.

The Potions Master, who had remained fairly quiet the whole evening, finally spoke up. "Minister, thank you for the invitation; as pleasant as it is, I have to fulfil my Head of House duties and need to return to Hogwarts now."

With that Severus and Harry left the room, letting out a simultaneous sigh of relief when they arrived back in their quarters.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

Too soon for Harry's liking, the school year came to the end, and the end of year tests began. However, the elves had once again taught him well, and, in spite of Harry's concerns, he received best grades in all of his tests, except for History of Magic, where he got into a fight with Professor Binns over the battle against the elves that had taken place in 1182.

"Stupid ghost," he muttered, when Severus informed him about his grades a week into the holidays, causing Severus to look at him with amusement.

"History of Magic has not been one of my favourite subjects either," the Potions Master admitted, smirking.

"Dumbledore should better ask Twinkle to teach History of Magic," Harry said in an upset voice. "He can teach much better and is not as narrow minded as the ghost."

"It's Professor Dumbledore, Harry," Severus corrected him lightly, before he said thoughtfully, "Maybe you should suggest that to the Headmaster. If we're going to have elves attending Hogwarts as students, maybe we should also have a teacher, who is an elf."

"Even if Twinkle is bonded to him?" Harry asked, doubtfully.

"Well, it does not necessarily have to be Twinkle," Severus responded. "Maybe one of the elder elves, for example, is willing to teach, at least until one of the soon to be first years finishes Hogwarts."

"Oh right," Harry said pensively. "I wonder if I'll be able to travel to the Isle of Elves again this summer. I really liked it there."

"I can ask Cicero to take you there for a few days, and I'll ask my colleagues if their elves may join you," Severus offered kindly, before he glanced at his wrist watch, pointing out that it was time to attend dinner in the Great Hall.

HP

Dumbledore promised to speak with Twinkle about the History of Magic classes, and a few days later, he informed his colleagues and Harry that Twinkle was too busy to teach students, since he was already teaching the elves' children in addition to being the personal elf of the Headmaster. However, Twinkle had introduced Dumbledore to Simon, who was a few years older than Harry, Nina, and Tony, but very small for his age. Ever since Simon had learned about Harry originally being human, he had been very interested in human history and was predestined to teach History of Magic at the human students' part of the school. "Now I only have to inform Professor Binns that his services are not needed anymore," Dumbledore finished his explanation.

"Thank you very much, Professor Dumbledore," Harry said gratefully, casting Severus an appreciative look.

HP HEALER POMFREY HP

To Harry's surprise, Nina, Tony and he were allowed to spend a whole month on the Isle of Elves. During the first week, Misty accompanied them, and when she left, knowing that the three children were in good hands with her mother, she promised that Cicero would come a few days before they had to return to Hogwarts at the end of July.

Harry couldn't help feeling sad when Misty left. '_I am really stupid. Nina and Tony are here with me, and Grandmother Anastasia is really nice_,' he scolded himself. Nevertheless, he couldn't help the feeling that Anastasia was watching him like a hawk, just as she had done the year before. It was only a day after Misty returned to Hogwarts that he felt the achy spots spread in his mouth again. Harry decided to stay out of Anastasia's way as much as possible in order to hide his problem and convinced his friends to spend the whole day on the beach. Fortunately, by the time they returned home in the evening, Harry felt much better, and the green spots were nearly gone, so that Anastasia did not notice that something was not completely as it should be. '_Thank Merlin_,' Harry thought. '_I wouldn't want to be looked after by Anastasia. She is much stricter than Mum_.'

However, on the day before Cicero was supposed to take the three children back to Hogwarts, Tony became sick. Like Harry had efficiently done once a week so far, he tried to hide that he was not feeling well; however, Anastasia noticed soon that he was running a fever and thoroughly checked on the boy.

"You have the elves' measles," she told him sternly, turning to Cicero. "Do you know if Nina and Harry already had them before?"

"No, I don't think so," Cicero replied thoughtfully, raising an eyebrow at Nina.

"No. I remember that someone in the boys' dormitory caught it a few years ago, but none of us got it then," Nina replied, looking worriedly from one to another.

The Healer decided to keep Nina and Harry in quarantine for three weeks. They were allowed to freely move around the island; however, they could not return to Hogwarts or go anywhere else outside of the Isle of Elves.

'_That's fun, spending another three weeks here with Nina_,' Harry thought, feeling somehow thrilled at the thought, even if he felt sorry for Tony. He was so ill that Anastasia would not even allow them to keep him company, and the two thirteen-year-olds spent the days further exploring the island. Sometimes, they spent the time together with other children of the neighbourhood.

One day, one of the boys living nearby asked, "Haves you ever beens to the Execution Moor?"

"The Execution Moor?" Nina was the first to speak up. "We haven't been there, but I've heard about it. It must be a horrible place."

"It is." The boy nodded and explained to Harry, "Murderers ares being takens there, or, for example, if a boat with humans comes by, they'll be takens there as well. They won'ts be ables to moves away, and, even if they's wizards, their magic won'ts work. So you mays only take a look."

"Harry is an elf and has all the elves' knowledge," Nina threw in firmly. "Even the elder elves have accepted him as an elf, and he has the usual elves' rights."

"Ah all right; then he shoulds be okay," the boy replied. "I just thoughts you should knows beforehand."

"Thank you for the warning," Harry said softly, somehow not feeling all too well when they approached the Execution Moor, especially as he eyed the leftovers of the bones that were scattered over the place.

"There has beens an execution last winter," the boy explained, "and everyone threws jellyfish, rats, and spiders at the convict, before the elder elves killeds him with their usual spell."

Harry quickly looked away, finding that it was very cold at the spot, even if they were standing on the grass that surrounded the Execution Moor, which consisted of black mud. However, when they returned home, he felt burning hot and realised in shock that he was getting his spots, which were quickly spreading over his mouth.

"Oh no, I think I'm getting sick," he admitted to Nina, who cast him a terrified look, taking in his deeply flushed cheeks and the beads of sweat that were building on his forehead.

"I think so, too," she said worriedly and led him straight to Anastasia, due to the lack of protest from Harry knowing that he had to be very ill.

Anastasia diagnosed the elves' measles in combination with the Grindylow pox. "Well, you'll have to stay here for another two weeks at the minimum," she informed him, before she made him drink two different potions and put him to bed.

Harry couldn't care less. He felt too miserable to even think. Only when he drifted off to sleep, he began to have fevered nightmares about the Execution Moor, about jellyfish and spiders being thrown at him, and about thestrals that tried to bury him in the black moor. Whenever Anastasia woke him up from one of his nightmares, he sobbed and asked for his mother. Realising that Harry's condition worsened on a daily basis, Anastasia asked Nina to keep an eye on Harry, while she popped herself to Hogwarts together with the completely recovered Tony.

When Harry woke up after a fight with a polar bear that tried to cover him with snow, Misty was sitting on the edge of his bed. "Mum," Harry sobbed, feeling extremely relieved at the sight of his mother. "Can you take me back to Hogwarts?" Unaware that Anastasia was listening as well, he told Misty about his visit to the Execution Moor and his fears that the elves were going to drag him there to kill him.

"No Harry," Misty said in her usual soft voice. "I believe that it's only due to your high fever that you're being so childish, but you know that since we adopted you, you became part elf as well, and you have all the elven rights as well as the elven magic. No one would be able to make you go there or even keep you there. You could just pop away. Don't worry, sweetie. Try to relax and rest. Mistress Poppy allowed me to stay here with you for a week."

By the time Misty had to return to Hogwarts, Harry was already feeling much better. '_Oh my, I really was stupid last week_,' he mused, unaware of the fact that this was not the last time he would hear about the Execution Moor.

_tbc..._

_Thank you so much for your kind comments!_

_I'm not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes. All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	23. Dementors

**23 – Dementors**

By the time Anastasia deemed Harry well enough to return to Hogwarts, Harry had become used to the older Healer and happily agreed when she invited him to come back the next summer, even in case the other elves were not able to accompany him.

"I'd love to," Harry said, smiling. "Thank you so much for everything, Grandmother. Can I just pop myself back to Hogwarts?"

"No," Anastasia said in a no-nonsense voice. "You're still a child, and children are not strong enough to pop in and out of the Isle of Elves, especially as you're still weak from your illness. I'm going to take you to Hogwarts."

As much as Harry liked the Isle of Elves, he was also glad to be back home. After greeting Misty and the other elves, he popped himself into Severus' quarters and looked for the Potions Master, noticing in surprise that a small smile stole itself on his guardian's face at his sight.

"Welcome back home, Harry," Severus said in a soft voice. "Misty told me that you have been very ill. Are you feeling all right now?"

Harry nodded. "Yes, I've been fine now for about a week, but Anastasia wouldn't let me go. She's very overprotective. Oh well, what did I miss?"

The professor let out a long sigh, before he explained that someone called Black had escaped from Azkaban, and that the Headmaster feared that Black was after him to avenge the Dark Lord. Harry frowned. "After me?" he asked in disbelief. "Why is that?" He listened to Severus' explanation about his parents' Secret Keeper and the Dark Lord, before he asked calmly, "Should I remain invisible all the time?"

Severus cast him a surprised look. "You want to attend classes invisibly?" he queried, quirking an eyebrow in amusement. "No," he said pensively, "I believe that you'll be safe within the castle. However, if you go out onto the grounds or especially to Hogsmeade, you should remain invisible at all times."

"I'll do that," Harry promised, smiling at the professor's concerned expression. "You know, I'm used to being invisible, sir," he said reassuringly.

"I know that," Severus replied thoughtfully, remembering how the small boy had managed to fool him and his colleagues for years. "Harry, have you ever heard of Dementors?" he then asked, giving his ward a sharp look. Seeing that Harry shook his head, he explained about Dementors and that a few of them were guarding the grounds in order to catch Sirius Black and kiss him, ending his monologue with the advice, "Just see that you're careful around them."

It was later the same day, when Harry attended dinner in the Great Hall together with the complete Hogwarts staff, that Professor Quirrell addressed him. "Mr. Potter, for safety reasons, I am going to ride on the Hogwarts Express tomorrow. Would you like to accompany me? Professor McGonagall told me that you have never boarded the Hogwarts Express so far."

Harry cast Severus an unsure glance, but, seeing the Potions Master unobtrusively nod, he replied, "Thank you so much for offering, Professor. I'd love to come with you, sir." While he had been very apprehensive towards the Defence Against the Dark Arts professor after his return from St. Mungo's a year ago, by now he had become used to the professor, knowing that the man was very kind and had no intentions whatsoever to harm him.

HP

Knowing that Professor Quirrell was unaware of Harry's connection with the elves and therefore did not know that he could easily pop them, Harry obediently followed the professor to the Apparition border and held on to the wizard's arm, so that Quirrell could apparate them to King's Cross. "You may go look for your friends, but I expect you to join me in my compartment," the professor told him, giving him a stern look.

"Yes sir," Harry promised, wondering in annoyance if it was because of the matter with Black. He searched the platform for Hermione, Millicent, Neville, and Blaise, before he pulled his friends into the compartment, where the professor was engrossed in an old tome.

"Here?" Blaise whispered in disbelief, causing Harry to roll his eyes and nod, so that his friends smiled in understanding and took their seats.

'_I'd love to tell them about the Isle of Elves_,' Harry mused, '_but I can't do that if Quirrell is here_.' He merely told his friends that he had been at home the whole time, thinking that his grandmother's house on the Isle of Elves was a bit his home now as well, and that he had been sick during the last few weeks, so that he was not overly prepared for the new school year. Neville and Blaise had spent the holidays at home, too; only the girls had travelled abroad with their parents, and Millicent and Hermione told them everything about their holidays.

Hermione was still talking about her vacation in France, when Harry noticed that it suddenly had begun to rain and was becoming dark and cold. '_It's freezing_,' he thought in surprise. '_I just hope I won't get sick so soon again_.' All of a sudden, a strange creature entered the room, and he heard him explain that humans like him were not tolerated on the Isle of Elves and would be killed at the Execution Moor, where they couldn't do magic at all.

"Harry!" Millicent's voice brought him back to reality.

The lights were on, the rain had stopped, and Harry noticed in shock that everyone was looking at him. "What happened?" he asked in confusion.

"Dementors," Quirrell explained, searching his robe pockets for a chocolate bar, which he held out to Harry. "Here, eat this; it'll make you feel better."

"Thank you," Harry mumbled, realising that he felt indeed better when he took a small bite. Nevertheless, the air in the compartment remained too cold and clammy for his liking, and by the time the train pulled into Hogsmeade, he could sense the small pox begin to spread in his mouth.

"Mr. Potter, please go and see Madam Pomfrey before attending the Welcoming Feast," the professor instructed him, and Harry knew better than to disobey and earn himself one or more toads.

He felt extremely relieved when his friends accompanied him and stayed with him in the hospital wing, until Pomfrey threw them out right before curfew, promising to release Harry in time for breakfast. During the following weeks, Harry felt very apprehensive, knowing that there were Dementors on the Hogwarts grounds. However, he did not get in contact with them, and when the Slytherin House team had Quidditch practice, their Head of House always spent the evening observing the practice, so that Harry slowly forgot about the incident on the train. However, he could not easily shake the memory of the Execution Moor off, although he could not explain why it affected him so much.

HP

Harry's third Hogwarts year passed completely uneventfully, until one day in April the house-elves captured Sirius Black, who had already entered the castle a few times, apparently searching for Harry in Gryffindor. Twinkle as the Head house-elf questioned the man together with a few other elves, and they decided to capture Ron Weasley's rat in order to verify if Black was telling the truth or not.

"This is not a usual rat, but an Animagus," Misty confirmed after a simple diagnostic spell.

The elves locked the rat in a cage, and Twinkle popped Sirius Black and the rat to the Headmaster, revealing the whole story to the old wizard. A few days later, Black was granted a trial at the Ministry, after which he was proclaimed free from all charges, while Peter Pettigrew was carried to Azkaban and received the Dementor's kiss.

Harry heard about the capture from Misty, who popped herself to him to tell him about the good news as soon as they had proof that the man was innocent. "So I don't have to make myself invisible anymore," he said, smiling at his mother.

"No sweetie; now you can really enjoy your Hogsmeade visits with your friends," Misty replied, smiling fondly at the boy.

It was only a few days later that Harry began to fully comprehend the importance of the matter with Sirius Black. On Saturday morning, Dumbledore addressed him at breakfast. "Mr. Potter, please come into my office right after breakfast," he said on his way out of the Great Hall.

Harry stumbled behind the professor, wondering what he wanted, because Dumbledore rarely called him into his office; normally, he would ask Severus to relent a message. When he entered the Headmaster's office, he was surprised to see a stranger sitting in front of Dumbledore's desk. '_Is that Black?_' Harry wondered, eyeing the strange man with interest.

The Headmaster offered a lemon drop, which Harry politely declined, before he introduced Sirius Black to Harry. "Harry, I don't know if anyone has told you about this, but your parents made Mr. Black your godfather."

Harry looked at the man in surprise, thinking, '_But Aunt Poppy and Professor McGonagall are my godmothers_.'

"Harry, I'd like you to come and live with me," Sirius Black said, smiling broadly.

"No," Harry replied immediately. "Hogwarts is my home, and I live here."

"Professor Snape is Harry's guardian," Dumbledore explained to the man, who looked at the Headmaster in shock.

"I'll have a conversation with the Ministry of Magic on this matter," Sirius said in an upset voice. "How dare they. Harry, I'm going to get the guardianship over you. Dumbledore, you'll hear from me."

"Mr. Black," Dumbledore said firmly. "Please sit down and let's speak about the matter first." He cast an apologetic look in Harry's direction, before he explained that the elves had abducted Harry and had changed his guardians and godparents without his knowing. "Maybe Harry could stay with you for a week during the summer holidays, so that you can get to know each other and decide together how to further proceed," he finally suggested.

"Okay, Harry, let's do that," Black agreed, sighing. "I'm living together with Remus Lupin in my parents' home. He was a good friend of your parents just like myself, and we'd love to get to know you."

Harry grudgingly agreed, in spite of having a bad feeling about the matter from the instant the word "Alright" left his lips.

_tbc..._

_

* * *

Thank you so much for your kind comments!_

_I'm not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes. All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	24. Godfathers

**24 – Godfathers**

Harry was not particularly interested in spending the first week of his holidays together with the two friends of his parents, since he had been very busy during the last weeks and wanted nothing more than to return to the elves' quarters and spend some time with his friends. On the day after the third years' last test, when everyone else spent a free day at Hogsmeade, Harry was going to take his NEWT exams together with the seventh years. In contrary to his first year, where Severus had made him take his OWLs without informing him beforehand, Harry knew that he was going to take his NEWT exams on that day and had spent several weeks practising the brewing of NEWT level potions under Severus' guidance.

To his relief, the written test in the morning was fairly easy for him as it was about the differences between the Wolfsbane potion and the wolfscure. Severus had told him about the Wolfsbane, which did not cure a werewolf but at least helped him keep his mind, while he was developing the wolfscure to really cure the werewolves. During the practical exam in the afternoon, he even had to brew the wolfscure potion, which he had already brewed so often that he had the impression as if he could brew it in his sleep. '_Today, I was really lucky_,' he thought as he cleaned his workspace afterwards, a huge smile playing on his lips.

HP

Two days later, Harry boarded the Hogwarts Express together with his friends, feeling very uncomfortable at the thought of spending a week with two wizards whom he didn't know at all. '_Well, I can always just pop away_,' he thought, recalling what Severus had told him the afternoon before, when they were brewing a potion together. '_I have no obligation to stay with these people_.'

"Harry, are you feeling all right?" Millicent suddenly asked, giving him a sharp look. "You're awfully quiet today."

Harry let out a long sigh. "Yeah, well, I'm just wondering how it's going to be, spending a week... You know..."

"Harry," Hermione interrupted him firmly. "Don't make yourself so upset, or you're going to get the grindylow pox again. You don't want to get sick during this week."

'_That's true_,' Harry agreed, terrified as he noticed that he already had a few tiny pox in his mouth. He pulled the small bags with drops out of his robe pocket that Severus had given him, just in case he needed it. He wasn't feeling too well anyway. Ever since the second Quidditch match teachers versus elves the evening before, where he had played Seeker for the teachers, after playing for the elves in the first match, he felt a bit achy, because he had crashed together with one of the elves. In fact, he had not wanted to play at all; however, the teachers had convinced him that he could not use the excuse that he didn't belong to the teachers anymore, since he had finished his Potions NEWT and as Severus' assistant now was a Potions teacher, even if he was still only thirteen years old. The elves had also insisted that he participated, even if he played for the opposite side.

He was pulled out of his thoughts, when the train pulled into King's Cross and everyone headed for the doors. Toying with the thought of just remaining on the train to go back to Hogsmeade, he quickly popped one of Severus' drops into his mouth, before he slowly followed the others out of the train, noticing in surprise that Sirius Black was standing right in front of him on the platform.

The man looked much better than when he had met him in the Headmaster's office, and he smiled broadly at him. "Hello Harry," he said in a friendly voice. "Let's go home."

Before Harry knew what was happening, the man gripped his arm and apparated them away. They arrived in a kitchen, where another man with light brown hair was sitting at the table, studying an old tome.

"Hello Harry; I'm Remus Lupin. Just call me Remus, cub," the man told him, and Harry gave him a small smile in return.

"Hello Harry," Sirius laughed, pulling the boy in a bear hug. "It's good to have you here, Prongslet."

'_Prongslet?_' Harry wondered. '_What does that mean, and why is he calling me that?_' He unobtrusively rubbed his forehead. "I'm glad to be here, too," he lied in a quiet voice. In fact, the two men both seemed very friendly, but he just didn't feel overly well, and he was a bit uncertain how to behave around the two strangers.

"Are you hungry, Prongslet, or shall we go? We wanted to take you to a Muggle cinema tonight. They have a funny film on," Sirius told him with apparent excitement.

Harry groaned inwardly. He felt the pox spread all over his mouth, and he wanted nothing more than to go to bed. "No, I'm not hungry," he finally said.

"Sirius, do we have to go tonight?" Remus queried. "Harry seems to be tired from the long travel."

"Yes, we have to go tonight, because the film is only on tonight," Sirius replied brightly. "Oh and by the way, just call me Sirius, Prongslet."

"All right, thanks," Harry mumbled, trying to set up a friendly expression. '_I should have stayed at home_,' he thought, longing for his bed in the boys' dormitory in the elves' quarters.

HP

Harry sat quietly between the two adults, while they were watching an action film that Harry didn't find interesting at all. He had to try hard not to fall asleep, and he kept himself busy making plans for his stay at the Isle of Elves later in the holidays. From time to time, he sucked on one of the sweets from Severus, glad that they helped him to feel much better at least for a while. He inwardly sighed in relief when the film was over.

However, when they finally left the cinema, Sirius apparently had no intention of going home but suggested, "Let's head to the Leaky Cauldron for a butterbeer and something to eat."

"That's a good idea," Remus agreed but then looked at Harry and asked, "Are you hungry? Or are you too tired to go out?"

Harry cast the man a grateful look and hesitantly replied, "Yes sir, I'm a bit tired."

"Ah but I thought we could have a butterbeer together, Harry," Sirius replied in clear displeasure, only to add, "Your father would be disappointed, Prongslet. We spent many days drinking through the nights, especially during the holidays. Are you sure that you prefer to go home?"

"Padfoot, let's go home and allow the boy to go to bed," Remus admonished him lightly. "Look at him; he can hardly keep his eyes open. I'll cook something at home."

"He has no talent to be a Marauder," Sirius replied in an upset voice, looking at Harry in clear displeasure.

"I'm sorry, Sirius; no, it's all right. Let's go," Harry then said, not wanting to get on the bad side of his father's friends.

However, to his great relief Remus insisted on going home, so that Harry could get a good night's rest. In the morning, it was Remus, who came into Harry's room to see if he was awake.

"Good morning, sir," Harry said sleepily. "I'm sorry that I was so tired last night. Sirius seemed to be very disappointed in me."

"Harry, that's completely all right, and I understand you well," Remus replied in a gentle voice. "Sirius is still getting used to normal life after spending twelve years in Azkaban. At the moment, he is like a big child, and he is over the moon with joy about having you here. Just tell me if you're unable to keep up with his ideas. He will have to accept that you're not your father and that you probably are very different from him."

Remus and Harry quietly talked for a while, before Harry was allowed to take a shower and get ready for breakfast. To his immense relief, the pox had not worsened overnight, and he was able to get them in grip just by sucking on his drops a few times a day. '_Severus must have improved the recipe_,' he thought, feeling very grateful towards his human guardian.

HP

During the following days, Harry slowly became used to his godfather's overwhelming attitude, and he even managed to enjoy himself. They spent much time flying, playing Wizard's chess and visiting interesting places in Muggle London. In the evenings, the two older wizards often told Harry about his parents and their own time at Hogwarts. While Severus sometimes spoke about Harry's mother, Sirius' and Remus' stories mostly revolved around his father and Harry listened with interest and amazement to their anecdotes.

The week passed by quickly, and before Harry left, he promised his two new friends to visit them again the following year if not earlier. Sirius offered that he could use the Floo to the Headmaster's office at Hogwarts; however, Harry decided to pop himself home. '_The Floo might be useful for people, who can't pop themselves, but I prefer this way to travel_,' he thought, glad that the two wizards knew about his upbringing with the elves, so that he didn't have to keep up appearances. He popped home, right into the elves' quarters, where he searched for his mother.

"Mum, I'm back," he said happily, pulling Misty into a bear hug.

"Harry, how was your week?" Misty asked, smiling upon noticing how happy and relaxed he looked.

"It was great, but I'm glad to be back home," Harry replied, truthfully, before he went to look for his friends.

HP

Harry once again spent a month at the Isles of Elves, while his friends and his guardians took turns visiting him. However, now that he had become used to his grandmother Anastasia, Harry didn't mind being alone with her anymore, and he enjoyed himself greatly playing with the other children on the island.

When he returned to Hogwarts at the beginning of August, he noticed in surprise that the elves were very busy, and Misty explained patiently that a Trimagical Tournament was going to take place at Hogwarts during the next school year. "Therefore, the elves have to prepare some of the unused corridors and rooms for the guests."

During the remaining weeks of the holidays, Misty and Poppy gave Harry Healing classes every morning, while he spent the afternoons assisting Severus with the brewing of hundreds of batches of potions to replenish Poppy's stock. However, as much as he enjoyed himself, Harry was very happy when finally his human friends came back to Hogwarts.

'_Fourth year students_,' he mused as he observed the new first years becoming sorted; '_we're really getting big_.'

"You're going to feel much bigger, when you have to teach Potions classes for Professor Snape," Blaise whispered.

Harry looked at his friend in surprise, unaware that he had voiced his thoughts. _'That's true, but I don't know if I'd be able to teach anyway. Brewing myself and teaching to brew is something completely different_,' he mused.

Since he had already finished his complete Potions education, he could not only assist the professor with his brewing but could even take over classes if necessary for some reason. While his friends had to attend Potions classes, he had several free hours a week, which Misty and Poppy used to teach him Healing.

On the one hand, Harry was sad that there was no Quidditch this school year; however, on the other hand, the whole school was very excited in anticipation of the Trimagical Tournament. Harry sighed in relief as Dumbledore announced the age limit for the participants as he set up the Goblet of Fire. '_Thank Merlin_,' he thought; '_no one can expect me to participate for any reason_.' Unfortunately, only a few hours after the Welcoming Feast for the two guest schools, he came down with a very bad case of the grindylow pox and was confined to bed for a whole week. To his relief, Misty and Poppy allowed him to stay in his own room in Severus' quarters, and his friends had permission to visit him; however, as much as he begged Severus and Madam Pomfrey to let him attend the dinner, at which the Goblet of Fire would announce the participants for the tournament, they insisted that he was still not well enough to get up. '_At least they allowed Nina to keep me company_,' Harry thought as he tried to concentrate on a game of wizard's chess with her.

It was a few hours later, when Misty had just checked on Harry and sent Nina back to the elves' quarters, that Severus entered the room with Dumbledore, McGonagall and Pomfrey in tow. Harry sleepily blinked, wondering what could be wrong that Severus brought so many people into his room at that time of the evening.

"Harry," Severus began to ask in a stern voice, "did you put your name into the Goblet of Fire?"

_tbc..._

_Thank you so much for your kind comments! I am sorry it took me so long to update, mainly due to health problems, but also because I was not contented with the chapter and had to re-write it before I now feel ready to post it... :P_

_I'm not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes. All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	25. Visions and Resolutions

**25 – Visions and Resolutions**

Harry looked at the adults in total confusion. "No," he said slowly, "when and why would I have done that?"

"Very well, Harry," Dumbledore said gently. "Harry, did you instruct anyone to put your name into the goblet?"

Harry glared at the Headmaster. "Of course not," he said indignantly. "I'm glad that there is the age limit, so that no one can force me to participate. It was bad enough having to deal with the Horcruxes and the Dark Lord and whatever," he added, sighing.

"Albus, leave Harry in peace," Severus spoke up firmly. "I told you that someone else must have put Harry's name in. Harry has been too sick to do anything like that, even if he wanted, and as you heard him he does not want to participate. This is ridiculous."

"The problem is," Dumbledore said slowly, thoughtfully stroking his beard, "that since the Goblet chose him, he is now in a magical contract with the Trimagical Tournament. There is no way to get out of the contract."

"A contract?" Harry repeated in disbelief. "I did not make a contract with anyone or anything."

"And he can't be in any contract, because he is not of age, and as his magical guardian I will not allow him into any binding contract anyway," Severus added firmly. "Albus, you have to either make anyone agree that Harry is out of the tournament, or you must cancel the whole tournament. Harry will not participate, and that's my last word in this matter."

"Very well, now that this is clarified, leave and let Harry get some rest," Pomfrey said resolutely.

HP

Later the same night, the elves closely inspected the Goblet, casting thorough spells at it. To everyone's surprise, they found out that Alastor Moody, who was one of the Aurors guarding the school during the Triwizard Tournament, had put Harry's name into the Goblet.

When Severus told him the story, Harry could not understand every detail; he only comprehended that someone had been under Polyjuice potion and had now been transferred to Azkaban and that the three schools had decided to officially cancel the tournament, so that Harry would not have to participate. Instead, the tournament took place as scheduled; however unofficially.

That night Harry had a strange dream about an ugly creature that was talking with some people he did not know about something, which he couldn't remember afterwards. When he tried to recall the dream afterwards, he even meant that he had heard his own name. '_Probably just a fever induced nightmare_,' he thought and dismissed the memory.

HP

During the following months, Harry and his friends enjoyed themselves greatly watching the tournament, especially when the Hogwarts champion, Cedric Diggory, became the favourite after the second task.

'_Thank Merlin I don't have to participate_,' Harry thought in relief as he followed his friends out onto the grounds to watch the third task of the tournament. Suddenly, he somehow stumbled and fell to the ground, surprised as he could not even recall a reason that had made him trip.

"Are you all right?" Hermione asked in concern, holding out her hand to pull him up.

"Of course. I just didn't pay attention," Harry replied, when something silverish caught his eyes. He reached for the object; however, as soon as his fingers made contact to it, he noticed a strange feeling behind his navel, before the world turned black and he felt himself being whisked away.

When his surroundings became clear again, he looked around in confusion. '_A cemetery_,' he realised in surprise, finding himself right next to a grave just in front of a huge cauldron.

"Potter," he heard someone speak, but he could not see anyone. However, he suddenly remembered the voice of the strange creature, which in the meantime he had seen in his nightmares a few times. '_I must get away from here_,' he thought and instantly turned himself invisible as he suddenly saw himself at wand pit of an unknown man. He quickly popped himself right into the elves' quarters at Hogwarts. Only when he safely arrived at home, he noticed that his knees were shaking and that he was beginning to get pox. '_The dream was not a nightmare. It must have been a vision_,' he realised in shock.

"Harry, what are you doing here?" Misty asked in surprise, eyeing him in concern that intensified tenfold upon hearing the story. She instructed him to remain in the elves' quarters and rest, while she informed Cicero, Malcolm and Twinkle as well as Professors Dumbledore and Snape.

Since all of his elves' friends were still working at that time of the day and he still felt weary and uncomfortable with the spreading pox, Harry decided to take a nap, from which he only woke up when Misty gently shook his shoulder several hours later. To his surprise, his mother insisted that he had to eat dinner together with the elves and stay at home overnight.

"But I feel fine, and tonight will be a feast because of the end of the tournament," he protested weakly, wondering why Misty was so overprotective. However, when Malcolm after dinner informed him that the student champion of the tournament had been kidnapped and forced to help revive Voldemort, he felt very guilty. '_It should have been me and not Cedric_,' he thought, terrified.

'_On the other hand_,' a small voice at the back of his head spoke up, '_I should be extremely grateful for mum's caution as well as for being able to make myself invisible and pop. Otherwise he would have used me like he originally intended_.'

He was pulled out of his thoughts when Cicero explained, "Although we vanished all of the Horcruxes, the Dark Lord was alive at that time, even if only as a spirit. Therefore, we'll have to discuss with the elder elves and also with the professors what we're going to do about him."

HP

For the first time in months, Harry spent the night in his dormitory in the elves' quarters, feeling very grateful that the elves still reserved his bed, although he usually stayed in Slytherin or in his own room in Severus' quarters. Together with Tony and the other boys he had much fun and was just about to forget about the day's happenings, when he was suddenly pulled into a vision.

He found himself in a dark stone room. A man, whom he could not recall having seen ever before, was sitting on a throne, surrounded by a group of men, clothed in black and wearing black hoods.

"Severus," the man called out, causing one of the dark figures to step forward and bow deeply.

"Yes my Lord," he heard his guardian's voice.

Horrified, Harry observed a conversation between what seemed to be the Dark Lord and the Potions Master, during which Severus was questioned about his absence on the graveyard earlier the same day. To his immense relief, the evil wizard seemed to accept Severus' explanation about having been stuck at Hogwarts. He merely cast a few spells at the professor and released him.

'_Ouch, that hurts_,' Harry thought when the vision ended as sudden as it had begun. '_I wonder what spell that was and why I can feel it. Maybe Severus is in a lot of pain now_.' He quickly told his friends that he was going to pop into Severus' quarters in case anyone asked for him and popped away, not to the dungeons but out onto the grounds, where he could sense Severus.

"Severus," he addressed the professor. "I'm going to pop you home."

Ten minutes later, the two wizards were sitting in the living room, gratefully accepting the tea that Cicero brought them with a worried look at Harry. Severus shared the concern, especially upon hearing that Harry had not only witnessed but also felt what had happened in his meeting with the Dark Lord.

"That was an unforgivable curse," he explained patiently, summoning a phial from his lab. After adding a few drops of the lime green liquid to Harry's tea, he gulped down the rest of the phial, sighing in relief as he replaced the cork. "Drink your tea," he instructed the boy. "It will help with the after effects of the curse."

HP

During the following weeks, Harry frequently felt himself being pulled into visions. Strangely, sometimes he even saw the scenes from the Dark Lord's point of view and heard himself speak to his followers. At other times, he took the role of an invisible spectator. '_I just hope the Dark Lord won't notice that I'm watching his meetings_,' he frequently thought. However, when he voiced his thought in Severus' presence, his guardian said darkly, "Maybe he knows about it and willingly pulls you into his mind in order to manipulate you. Please Harry promise me that whatever you see in your visions, don't do anything, but come to speak to me before taking any actions."

"I promise," Harry said solemnly.

A few days later, a sudden idea crossed his mind. _'I can just pop myself to the Dark Lord and pop us together to the Execution Moor.'_ His thoughts went haywire. _'That sounds too easy to be possible,'_ he mused. _'But on the other hand, what can happen? If I remain invisible the whole time, it should be no problem.'_

Fearing that his mother would throw a fit upon hearing about his idea, Harry decided to first discuss his plan with Severus. He glanced at his wrist watch, noticing that it was still a few minutes before the beginning of curfew, and popped himself into his guardian's office, making himself invisible as he went.

"This sounds relatively fool-proof," Severus said slowly, "provided that you're sure that nothing can happen to you at the Execution Moor." Seeing that Harry seemed unsure, he suggested, "Let me discuss your idea with the elves and the Headmaster. I'll inform you of their reactions before breakfast tomorrow morning."

"Sir," Harry replied, quietly. "Please, let me participate in the conversation."

"Very well," the Potions Master agreed, knowing that, due to being his student assistant, Harry was exempt from curfew anyway.

A few minutes later, Professors Dumbledore and McGonagall as well as Cicero, Malcolm, Misty and Twinkle were assembled in his living room, where Severus presented Harry's idea.

"It will be possible, and the Execution Moor is completely safe for Harry, as he has been accepted on the Isle of Elves as one of us," Twinkle finally spoke up after a minute of thoughtful silence. "However, I suggest that I practise popping to the Execution Moor with Harry."

"Does it have to be Harry at all?" Misty threw in, sounding very upset. "Why can't Twinkle or any other elf pop the monster to the Execution Moor?"

Dumbledore let out a sigh and explained that it had to be Harry to vanquish Voldemort because of a prophecy that had been made even before Harry's birth, causing Harry's elven guardians to grudgingly agree to the plan.

* * *

_tbc..._

_Thank you so much for your kind comments! I am sorry it took me so long to update... _

_I'm not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes. All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	26. The Promise

**26 - The Promise**

After a short discussion, the professors and elves decided on a plan that would hopefully lead to the Dark Lord's final defeat. They decided that Harry's guardians should contact the elves on the Isle of Elves and discuss the matter before having another meeting on the topic in a few days' time.

If Harry had assumed that it would be a simple matter to pop Voldemort to the Execution Moor, he was sadly mistaken. Since he had already popped Severus here and there on multiple occasions, he had enough practice transporting a person in order to fulfil the task. However, it afforded a lot of magic to pop to the Isle of Elves due to the long distance and the wards around the island. Therefore, his guardians decided that he had to pop to the Isle at least ten times, at first without and later with a passenger, before he could even think about popping Voldemort with him.

"I suggest that Harry generally practises popping to the Isle on Sunday mornings," Malcolm spoke up, when the elves and the teachers again gathered in Severus' quarters.

"First of all, just pop yourself right into granny's house," Misty threw in, casting Harry a reassuring smile. "My mother will be waiting for Harry and will take him back to Hogwarts to prevent that he depletes his magic," she explained to the others.

"For the beginning, this will be sufficient," Twinkle said thoughtfully. "However, as soon as Harry is ready to pop one of us with him, he must pop right into the Execution Moor in order to get used to there."

_'So I have to pop to that place even more than once,'_ Harry thought, terrified. _'I can't wait to get over with it.'_

"Are you sure that this is not too much of a burden for Harry?" McGonagall queried, taking in Harry's subdued expression in apparent concern. "He also has to study and take his OWLs in all subjects but Potions at the end of the school year."

"It's all right, professor" Harry said quietly, offering the Scottish lioness a small smile.

"Minerva, Voldemort will not wait trying to kill Harry," Dumbledore replied firmly. "The sooner Harry and the elves can vanquish him the better."

However, during the following weeks, almost every Saturday night, Harry had to endure visions of Voldemort and his Death Eaters attacking Muggles and frequently suffered from the after effects of the Cruciatus curse. Whilst at most times, Misty's healing magic or Severus' potions made him feel better immediately, sometimes, the mental pressure from his visions was so immense that by the morning, small pox were spreading all over his mouth and Misty or Poppy forbade him to pop anywhere.

"Dad, I don't understand why I'm still having visions," he complained to Cicero one day, when he was stuck in bed with a bad case of the pox and a fever. "I thought they got rid of the Horcrux that was in my head. These visions are so annoying; I just want them to stop."

"Ahh I know, little one," Cicero replied, looking relieved when Misty re-entered the room. "But even if the Horcrux is gone, you're still connected to him through your scar."

"Don't worry, child," Misty said softly, soothingly caressing her son's flushed cheeks with her healing hands, "he'll be gone soon, and then you'll be free from this burden."

HP

At the end of the winter holidays, the elves finally deemed Harry ready to pop Voldemort to the Execution Moor.

_'I just hope everything will go well,'_ Harry mused when he trailed behind his friends to the Great Hall on Saturday morning, not looking forward to meeting Voldemort in less than twenty-four hours. _'What if he can hear my thoughts and see my surroundings like I can in the visions?'_ he thought, suddenly feeling uncertain about his plan.

After breakfast, he excused himself from his friends and popped home._ 'Thank Merlin Cicero promised to remain with me the whole time,'_ he thought, feeling very much reassured by the elf's company, when they popped to the evil wizard together.

A sharp pain shot through his head, as he stepped close to his enemy. From the corner of his eyes, Harry observed that Voldemort was just having breakfast together with a woman with long, black hair, who was clothed in black robes. _'I think I've already seen her in the visions several times,'_ he mused, _'not sure though.'_

Invisible to the wizards, Harry soundlessly waited until Voldemort had put down his steaming mug of tea in order to not get burned by the hot liquid. Finally, he grabbed the older wizard's arm and popped away, thinking of his least favourite place in the world.

Arriving at the Execution Moor, Harry immediately released the man's arm and popped over to his parents and a few elder elves, whom he saw waiting at the other end of the place, sighing in relief as his headache receded. Together with the elves, Harry waved his hand at the dark wizard, who had so far been too stunned to realise his kidnapping but now immediately began to scream in agony. A mere instant later, however, his voice faded into non-existence.

_'That's it. He's gone,'_ Harry mused, feeling incredibly relieved at the sight of the remainings of the Dark Lord. _'No more visions of Muggles being tortured by Death Eaters.'_

"Considering who that was, we better vanish the bones," Cicero spoke up, raising an eyebrow at the elder elves in a very Snape-ish manner.

"Harry." Bandhu, one of the elder elves, who had always seemed to have taken a special liking to Harry, nodded his agreement and addressed the boy. "Now you may transfigure his bones into anything you wish."

"Anything?" Harry repeated, questioningly, before he chuckled and pointed his right hand towards the bones of his former enemy and transfigured them into dragon dung.

"A good choice," Cicero commended him and with a flick of his hand cast a Scourgify spell at the dragon dung.

"Well done, Harry," Misty said, smiling relieved as she pulled her son, who had become taller than herself, into a comforting hug. "Let's go away from here. We'll have a party at Granny's house."

HP

All the elves, who had been involved in Voldemort's demise, joined them for a spontaneous victory party at Healer Anastasia's house.

"Is he really gone?" Harry asked, when he and Cicero were lingering in the kitchen observing Anastasia and Misty prepare some delicacies for the guests. "Somehow this seemed too easy."

Anastasia and Cicero chuckled, while Misty cast him a reproachful glare. "If you only knew how worried I was," she reprimanded him lightly, shaking her head in annoyance.

"No son, that was not easy, and yes, I believe that he is gone," Cicero finally replied, comfortingly putting a hand on Harry's shoulder. "It was quite an effort for you to pop yourself to the Execution Moor, especially with a passenger. Fortunately, the Dark Lord had no knowledge about your connections to the elves world and your elven abilities, let alone about the Isle of Elves and the Execution Moor, so that he was completely unprepared and helpless."

Harry thoroughly enjoyed himself, even if he regretted that Nina and Tony were not there, until the four Hogwarts elves suddenly announced that they had to return to the human world.

"Ahh, can't we stay at least until tonight or tomorrow?" Harry asked in disappointment, casting Misty a pleading look. "It's the weekend anyway."

"No Harry," Twinkle was the first to reply. "As you know, we're bonded to the professors, and we're not allowed to remain here without our master's or mistress' permission. We were only allowed to return here for Voldemort's demise, but now we have to return to our masters."

"Harry can stay here until tomorrow. He can either pop back alone, or I will take him back to Hogwarts in the evening," Anastasia offered, looking from Harry to her daughter.

"Thank you," Harry replied, deep in thoughts. Completely tuning out the elves' conversation, he only after the Hogwarts elves had left finally asked, "Why are all the elves bonded to humans?"

"We're not bonded to anyone," Bandhu explained. "However, the elves, who live in the human territory, have to bond to the humans in order to be able to work for them.

"But why can't they work for the humans and get paid for their work just like other humans? Isn't that totally unfair?" Harry queried, looking at Bandhu in expectance.

"Because the humans believe that the elves are their minors," the elder elf said, patiently. "It's even part of the wizards' law, written in the Statute of Supremacy made by the British Ministry of Magic. This is still a result of the human - elven war, which took place from 1252 to 1256. Maybe you have heard of that?" Bandhu continued.

"Yes, Twinkle told us about it," Harry recalled. "The wizards won the war and enslaved the elves."

"Exactly," one of the other elder elves agreed, looking at the boy with appreciation. "Fortunately, they don't have access to the Isle of Elves, which is where all elves belong. So if their owners die without an heir, in most cases the elves return here."

Harry, Anastasia and the elder elves spent the whole evening discussing the situation of the elves on the Isle of Elves and in the wizarding world in the past and present, and the elves kindly answered Harry's many questions, before Anastasia decided that it was time for her grandson to go to bed.

Harry grudgingly said good-bye to the elder elves. When he crossed the room towards the door, he turned around once more and said in determination, "Thank you so much for helping me to get rid of that monster today. I promise that I'll do my best to try freeing the elves from the wizards' supremacy."

HP

On Sunday evening, Anastasia insisted on popping Harry back to Hogwarts, in spite of his insistence that he would be well able to travel on his own. Misty pulled him into a bear hug, before she advised him to make an appearance in Severus' office. "I think Master Severus and the other professors are waiting for you."

To Harry's relief, the Headmaster was not present, and he quietly told his guardian and his godmothers about Voldemort's last minutes and about his promise to the elder elves.

"And how exactly do you intend to free the elves?" Severus queried, quirking an eyebrow in obvious amusement.

"I have no idea," Harry admitted, letting out a long sigh.

* * *

_tbc..._

_Thank you so much for your kind comments! I am sorry it took me so long to update..._

_I'm not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes. All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	27. Shocking the Magical World

**27 - Shocking the Magical World**

At breakfast on Monday morning, the Headmaster informed the whole school about Voldemort's demise and announced that there would be no classes for three days. "Today, everyone from the third year onwards is allowed to spend the day in Hogsmeade," he finally ended his announcement, causing a tumultuous applause to break out throughout the Hall.

"Let's go all together," Harry whispered to Millicent and Blaise, who were sitting on both sides of him.

Unfortunately, the Potions Master chose that instant to stride behind the Slytherin table, addressing Harry. "Mr. Potter, please accompany me to the Headmaster's office. Professor Dumbledore wishes to speak with you."

_'Oh no,'_ Harry thought, inwardly groaning. _'I don't want to talk about the matter anymore. Everyone can go to Hogsmeade and have fun because I helped to kill Voldemort, and I have to do small talk with the old coot instead of going with my friends. Lucky me.'_ Turning to Blaise, he suggested, "Go ahead and I'll catch up with you. See you in Hogsmeade later on."

Feeling absolutely annoyed, he quietly followed his guardian, until Severus stopped in front of the gargoyle, casting Harry an assessing look.

"Is everything all right, Harry?" he queried, keeping his expression blank.

"What does Dumbledore want, sir?" Harry asked in a quiet voice, looking up to the tall professor.

"It's still Professor Dumbledore, Harry," Severus lightly reprimanded him, before he turned to the gargoyle. "Final demise."

"Harry, my boy," the Headmaster greeted him enthusiastically, his baby blue eyes twinkling madly.

Harry groaned inwardly. "No thank you, sir," he politely refused the offered lemon drop and took his seat between Severus and Fawkes' perch.

"Harry, as you can imagine, the Minister of Magic was very pleased to hear about your victory over Voldemort," Dumbledore began to speak.

_'How good for him, but please leave me in peace,'_ Harry thought, training his eyes on Fawkes, who cast him an amused look in return.

"Like there was a party at the Ministry when you received the Order of Merlin for inventing the wolves cure, the Minister is inviting you to an official Voldemort Demise party in order to award you the Order of Merlin first class a second time," the Headmaster continued, causing Harry to turn around to view the old wizard.

"Who else is going to receive the Order, Headmaster?" he asked sharply.

"No one else, my boy," Dumbledore replied in apparent confusion. "You vanquished Voldemort just by yourself, didn't you?"

"No," Harry said firmly. "My father, Cicero, has popped together with me to the Dark Lord and then to the Execution Moor, and then he, Misty, Malcolm, Twinkle and the elder elves all cast the spell to destroy him. I'd not have been able to vanquish him alone. I tell you now, Professor, that I am not going to accept any award if not at least Cicero receives the same."

The Headmaster let out a deep sigh, thoughtfully stroking his long beard, before he replied gently, "My boy..."

"Don't my boy me, Headmaster," Harry interrupted him in a very upset voice. "I'm the elves' child. The elves raised me as their own, when I had no one else. They and their magic are amazing, and I greatly detest the humans' supremacy over the elves." He jumped from his seat. "If that's all, Professor..."

"Harry, sit down and behave yourself if you don't want to earn yourself a detention with me," Severus threw in sternly. "I understand you well, but you have no reason to speak in such a tone with the Headmaster. That was completely uncalled for."

"I apologize," Harry relented and sat down again. "However, I mean what I said, Professor, and I'd appreciate it if you could relay my message to the Minister."

"Harry," Dumbledore slowly replied, absentmindedly popping a lemon drop into his mouth. "You probably know as well as I do that the Minister will never agree to give the Order of Merlin to a house-elf."

"Well, then I don't want it either, and I'm going to give an exclusive interview to Mr. Lovegood, in which I explain that it was not me but the elves who vanquished Voldemort. I will also see to it that the magical world will be informed about the history of the elves and the total unfairness resulting from the Statute of Supremacy made up by the Ministry of Magic several hundred years ago."

Dumbledore let out a long sigh, while the edges of Severus' mouth twitched slightly, as if the Potions Master was unsuccessfully trying to suppress a grin.

"Very well, Harry, I'll speak with the Minister. In any case, the Demise party at the Ministry will be tomorrow evening," Dumbledore said, dismissively.

HP

Harry's thoughts went haywire, as he left the office behind his guardian. _'Maybe I should really speak with Luna's father,'_ he mused, absentmindedly following Severus to the dungeons.

"Harry, are you going to go to Hogsmeade today?" Severus asked, pulling Harry back to reality. "We can floo-call Mr. Lovegood and invite him to visit us if really want to give him an interview."

"Oh, yes please," Harry agreed, excitedly. "Can you ask him to come over right away?"

"We'll see," Severus said, smirking.

HP

Ten minutes later, Xenophilius Lovegood stepped out of the fireplace in Severus' living room. "Professor Snape," he greeted the Potions Master, slightly inclining his head. "I hope my daughter Luna is not the reason why you wanted me to come here."

"No Mr. Lovegood, Luna is an excellent student, and I have not heard of any complaints," Severus replied in a neutral voice, before he pointed to Harry. "In fact, my ward would like to give you an exclusive interview about his victory over the Dark Lord."

Lovegood turned his eyes from Severus to Harry in apparent surprise. "Oh Mr. Potter, that would be wonderful. What are your conditions?"

"Conditions?" Harry repeated, confused. "I merely want the magical world to know the truth about the elves, who were as much involved in the demise of Voldemort as myself, and I believe that you'll be much more able to understand and willing to write what I tell you than any reporter of the Daily Prophet." Seeing that Mr. Lovegood was listening intensely, Harry added, "I want to make sure that the elves will be properly compensated for what they have done for the magical community of this country."

Mr. Lovegood agreed to listen to Harry's story, and after Severus excused himself to his Potions lab, Harry and the editor of the Quibbler spent two hours speaking about everything concerning the elves and their relationship with humans as well as the demise of one evil wizard. When the two wizards finished their interview, Lovegood promised to publish a special edition of the Quibbler on the next day, knowing that Harry wanted the magical world to read the interview before the official demise party at the Ministry.

HP

As early as Tuesday morning, dozens of owls swept into the Great Hall at breakfast distributing the special edition of The Quibbler.

**_'The Truth about Harry Potter, the Elves and the Demise of Voldemort_****'**

The Headline was printed in bold, red letters, followed by an equally red subtitle.

**_'Harry Potter raised by elves - the saviours of the magical world'_**

"Wow, Harry, the complete edition is about you and the elves," Millicent blurted out, looking at the photo of Harry and his elven parents on the front page of the Quibbler in amazement.

Harry merely smiled as he read ahead, feeling very happy to have made the right decision when he had told his story to Lovegood. _'He really printed what I said,'_ he thought, contentedly. He was still engrossed in his reading, when all of a sudden the entrance doors were flung open and the Minister of Magic stormed into the Great Hall.

"Dumbledore, see to it that your golden boy withdraws his comments, or this will be the end of your time as Headmaster," the Minister growled, as he approached the Head table.

Slowly, Harry let his copy of the Quibbler sink onto the table, before he rose from his chair and popped away, coming to stand right in front of the Minister with his back towards the Head table.

"Minister Fudge," Harry greeted the man politely, before he continued in a firm voice, "the Headmaster has nothing to do with the article in the Quibbler. It was my decision to give my information to Mr. Lovegood. There is nothing you can do about it. In fact, I wonder how the public is going to react to this and if people will find you an adequate Minister of Magic if the Ministry refuses to acknowledge the rights of the elves." Before the astonished Minister could give an adequate reply, Harry added, "Thank you for the invitation to your demise party tonight. Please note that I'm going to participate together with some of the elves, to whom you owe a "thank you" for the demise."

"Mr. Potter, it is impossible to have mere house-elves as guests in the Ministry, especially not for the demise party, to which we expect guests from all over the world," Fudge said, lamely.

"Mr. Fudge, they are not mere house-elves. I'll ask the elder elves, who are not bonded to anyone, to accompany me. Did you know, by the way, that I am half elf?" Seeing the Minister's eyes widen, he chuckled. "Good day, Minister. Please inform me during the afternoon if my presence at the demise party will be required." With that he popped away, making himself invisible as he reappeared at the back of the Hall. _'Thank Merlin that Bandhu promised to come whenever I needed him for some reason. I'll just have to pop to the Isle later on,'_ he thought, as he curiously skimmed the front of the Hall for the Minister.

* * *

_tbc..._

_Thank you so much for your kind comments! I am sorry it took me so long to update..._

_I'm not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes. All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	28. Negotiations

**28 - Negotiations**

Harry slowly made himself visible again and unobtrusively returned to his seat between his friends at the Slytherin table.

"Harry, that was totally awesome," Millicent blurted out.

"Yes it was. I can't wait to see what's going to happen next," Blaise agreed in clear amusement.

Harry chuckled. "Oh well, I don't care what decision the Minister is going to make; I just know that I'm going to fight for the rights of the elves, and if he isn't careful, maybe he's been the Minister of Magic for the longest time."

The Slytherins discussed the matter until the house-elves cleared the tables and breakfast ended. Suddenly, Severus was standing behind Harry and said, sounding bored, "Mr. Potter, the Headmaster and the Minister wish to speak with you in Professor Dumbledore's office."

Harry slowly followed his guardian out of the Great Hall, feeling very much relieved by the professor's presence. "Severus, do you think that there is any chance that Fudge will agree to my conditions?" he asked, quietly, looking at the tall man in expectation.

Severus let out a long sigh and thoughtfully pushed an errand strand of hair out of his face, before he replied. "I believe that the Minister is forced to react to the article in the Quibbler in some way. He can't just ignore the matter in order to maintain the trust of the magical world. However, the question is to which extent the wizards and witches are willing to re-think the house-elves' positions. In any case, Minister Fudge might find himself out of his position very quickly. Therefore, he wants and needs you on his side in order to strengthen his own position."

By now they had reached the Headmaster's office, and Harry noticed in surprise that the round room was full with people. Apart from the Minister of Magic and Professor Dumbledore, the four Heads of House as well as Harry's parents and Bandhu were assembled, apparently waiting for him.

The thought _'Dumbledore completely forgot to offer lemon drops. That must be a first.'_ crossed Harry's mind, when the Headmaster immediately proceeded to introduce Twinkle, Cicero, Malcolm, Misty and Bandhu to the Minister.

"Dumbledore, what are you playing here?" Fudge shouted, angrily. "I'm not going to discuss anything with mere house-elves. I..."

"Bandhu is not a house-elf," Harry equally angrily interrupted the Minister. "He is an elder elf, a free elf, and he and my parents here have vanquished Voldemort together with me."

"Mr. Potter," Fudge directly addressed the boy, "what exactly are your conditions?"

Harry looked at the Minister in surprise, before he explained, "I will accept the Order of Merlin and work together with the Ministry of Magic in the future if - and only if - the Ministry of Magic revokes the Statute of Supremacy from 1256."

"Mr. Potter, think logically," the Minister sneered. "In what kind of position will this put me? The British magical world won't support me anymore if I order them to free their house-elves."

Harry chuckled. "Sorry Minister, but who said anything about freeing the elves? I merely demand the abolishment of the ridiculous Statue of Supremacy, which means that the elves shall have the same rights as the humans. They can either bond to humans or work for them being paid by them. It's up to each single human if they want to free their house-elves or not. There are many elves, who are not bonded to any human being but who'd surely be willing to work for humans if they were paid and had the same rights. Knowing my eleven family, I can assure you that the magical world would greatly profit from a good relationship with the elves just as they do from their connection to the Goblins. Plus the British magical world owes the elves, because I wouldn't have been able to vanquish Voldemort without them."

"Harry, would you mind putting your memory of Voldemort's demise into my Pensieve?" Dumbledore threw in, gently.

"No problem Professor," Harry immediately agreed.

While the professors were watching the scenes together with the Minister, Harry spoke with Bandhu and his parents, who thanked him profusely and encouraged him to continue his war path with the Minister."

"When the Minister returns from the Pensieve, I'm going to speak with him," Bandhu announced sternly, causing Harry to smile in relief and expectation.

HP

As soon as the Minister together with the professors returned from the Pensieve, Bandhu rose from his chair and began to speak. "We elves are reasonable people, known for our kindness. However, even we have our limits. As you know, together with my young friend Harry here, a group of elves has got rid of one very evil wizard for the British magical world. Therefore, the witches and wizards of Britain owe us." Seeing that Fudge opened his mouth to make a comment, he held up his hand and continued in a firm voice, "With this we call in a life debt against the British wizarding world. Either the Supremacy Statue of 1256 will be rescinded, or we're going to enslave the British magical world for one thousand years."

Before Fudge could reply to the threat, Harry threw in, "Minister, I advise you to consider the matter well, and by the way, a copy of this conversation will be posted by the Quibbler tomorrow morning at the latest." _'I hope Luna's father will agree to print it later today or tomorrow,'_ he thought, making a mental note to speak with Mr. Lovegood right after the meeting.

"Cornelius, if I may voice my opinion," Dumbledore spoke of in a gentle voice, "the elder elves have been a great help already before, when we had to destroy the Horcruxes, which Voldemort had made in the past. They are very intelligent people and valuable allies, of whom I personally think very highly. My advice is that you listen to Harry and agree with the elder elves about rescinding the Supremacy Statue. As Harry pointed out, there is no need to free the enslaved elves at this stage."

Fudge let out a long sigh. "Very well then, Dumbledore, can you promise that the elves won't harm the wizards or witches or pull the British magical world into a war?"

"I swear on my elven magic that the elves are very peaceful and do not mean to harm the humans as long as I am alive, provided that the elves will have the same rights as the humans from this day onwards," Bandhu threw in, firmly looking at the Minister.

Sighing again, Fudge promised to make a declaration towards the abolishment of the Supremacy Statue during the demise party in the evening. "Mr. Potter, are your conditions fulfilled herewith?" he queried, sounding impatient.

"If at least Cicero receives the Order of Merlin together with me, then yes Minster, thank you very much," Harry replied, smiling happily, only to add, "I understand that I'll be allowed to bring my parents as well as Bandhu with me to the party. Is that correct, sir?"

"Yes," Fudge grudgingly agreed, before he hurriedly took his leave and rushed to the fireplace, causing everyone to laugh as he vanished in the flames.

"He couldn't wait to get away from us," McGonagall said dryly. "Congratulation Harry, you did an awesome job today."

With that Severus turned to Cicero. "Cicero, if you were a free elf and being paid for your work, would you still be willing to work for me?"

_'Wow,'_ Harry thought, staring at his guardian in awe. _'I'd never thought that he'd be the first to free his elf. This is too cool.'_

Cicero hesitantly glanced at Misty, who squeezed his hand and said in a soft voice, "Go on Cicero, this won't harm our relationship, and our child will be able to be a free elf too."

"You're going to have a child?" Harry blurted out in absolute surprise.

Misty smiled. "Yes son, you will become a big brother in a few months' time. We've only known since last night, when Mistress Poppy told me the good news."

"Master Severus," Cicero spoke up, hesitantly, "I wouldn't want to work for anyone else, and I don't mind being bonded to you. However, maybe it'll be easier for our children if I'm a free elf. Therefore, I'd like to accept your offer to free me, provided that I'll still be able to work for you."

"Of course Cicero," Severus replied gently. "I'll just have to check how to free you, and you need to tell me what I should pay you every month."

Cicero shook his head. "No Master Severus, I don't want to be paid. Just the status will make me happy for my family, but I will still live together with the house-elves and don't need any money."

"I'm going to make a new vault at Gringotts and put the money from the Order of Merlin into that," Harry announced. "The money will be used for the Hogwarts fees of elf children, who want to attend Hogwarts, provided that this will be possible in the future, which I very much hope."

"Harry, that's a very good idea," Dumbledore said warmly, "and together with the elder elves I'll see to it that it'll be possible in the future."

"Thank you Headmaster," Harry replied politely, before he excused himself in order to contact Mr. Lovegood. _'I just hope that the Minister will do as he promised,'_ he mused on the way to the dungeons. _'Oh well, I can attend the party together with Bandhu and the elves, so if necessary we can still fight him in front of all his guests.'_

Fortunately, Mr. Lovegood immediately took the time to floo over for another interview and also promised to speak again with Harry at night after the party and still print the news the following morning.

HP

To Harry's enormous surprise, Fudge did not only keep his promise and released a decree declaring the Supremacy Statue of 1256 as invalid but also motioned for Harry and his parents as well as Bandu to sit at the Minister's table and introduced them as special guests of the evening.

_'I wonder if he knows that Cicero, Misty and Malcolm are all free by now,'_ Harry mused, while he inwardly groaned upon realising that Rita Skeeter was sitting right next to him.

Apparently the Minister knew that Harry's parents were free elves, as he indeed awarded the Order of Merlin equally to Cicero and Harry, instructing both recipients to inform him when they had made accounts at Gringotts, where they wanted the money to be sent.

"How does it feel to be the first elf receiving the Order of Merlin?" Skeeter queried, eagerly looking around Harry to the tall elf sitting on the boy's other side.

"Ms. Skeeter, I'm sorry, but my parents and I have made an exclusive contract with Mr. Lovegood," Harry lied, "and you'll be able to find all this information in tomorrow morning's edition of the Quibbler."

* * *

_tbc..._

_Thank you so much for your kind comments for the previous chapter!_

_I am not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes. All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	29. Protection

**29 - Protection**

During the following week, Harry received a lot of Howlers from all over the magical world. However, the elves saw to it that not a single bird was able to directly approach Harry let alone hand over any letter to the boy. Only after thoroughly checking letters for possible spells, charms and poison, did the elves give the harmless letters to Harry.

One day, when Harry visited Misty in the elves quarters, he noticed an elf lying in the nearest bed in the hospital room. Almost every part of the elf's body was bandaged, so that Harry could not even recognise who it was.

"Mum, who's that and what happened?" he asked, flabbergasted, causing Misty to let out a long sigh.

"It's Tinky, Harry. She got injured when she opened a letter, which exploded all over her," she explained, sadly. "Right now, I can only help her by spreading Murtlap over her wounds, but it heals very slowly."

"Mum," Harry replied, alert, "don't tell me that she got injured while opening a letter that was meant for me?" He gave his mother a piercing look, forcing her to admit the truth.

"Harry, it's not your fault," Misty said in a soothing voice. "Don't make yourself so upset over this. Things like this happen, but it's not your fault."

"Does Severus know about this?" Harry queried in determination.

"Yes, he's trying to invent a more efficient version of Murtlap, but it seems to be difficult," Misty replied, sighing again.

"I'm going to help," Harry promised and left the room, popping himself straight into his own room in the Potions Master's quarters. He found his guardian in the lab. "Severus, can you please excuse me from all classes?" he demanded in a firm voice. "Before I'm going to do anything else again, I'll invent a cure for poor Tinky."

Severus let out a long sigh, putting the potion that he was just brewing under a stasis charm. "Harry," he spoke up, thoughtfully, "this is not easy. If you just took the double amount of the for the efficiency important ingredients, the effects would be doubled but so would the side effects, which remain unnoticed at the usual dose but would be grave if doubled."

"I understand," Harry replied, still under shock. "Very well, I'll go to the library and do some research. Maybe I'll also go and visit Granny. She might know something. As I said, please excuse me from my classes for the time being. If it hadn't be Tinky, I would have been badly injured and would miss classes anyway, so I can very well miss them trying to heal her."

"Don't forget that you have to take your OWLs at the end of the school year, and whatever you do, be careful and come back here by curfew at the latest," Severus instructed the boy, giving him a concerned look.

HP

Harry popped straight to the Isle of Elves, arriving in front of Healer Antasia's house.

"Harry dear," his grandmother greeted him with an apparent mixture of delight and concern. "I'm glad to see you, but did anything happen that makes you come here in the middle of the school year?" she asked, worriedly, causing Harry to sob.

"An elf is badly injured because she opened a poisoned letter that was meant for me," he sobbed. "I need a potions ingredient that doubles the effect of the Murtlap essence but not the side effects." He gave his grandmother a helpless look. "I thought maybe you or the Elder elves know something."

Anastasia remained thoughtful for a moment, before she replied, "Let's ask the Elder elves first if they have an idea. They'll be very happy to have you here, too, as you're the new hero of all elves." She grinned at her grandson, whose expression became annoyed.

"Oh no, then I don't want to meet anyone," he said, darkly. "Oh by the way, did you already hear the good news? Misty and Cicero are both free and they're expecting a baby."

A huge smile spread over Anastasia's face, and she said, "Thank you so much for the good news, my boy. Are you looking forward to becoming a big brother?"

"Yes, very much," Harry reassured her, smiling.

"If the Elder elves don't have an idea, I'm going to contact someone in the human world," Anastasia said slowly. You must know that I've been in contact with several human healers for years, and I remember that Mary O'Brien once told me something about a special ingredient. I don't remember the details, but I think it was something that doubles effects of potions. She's the Healer on a small island in the north of Scotland. I'll write to her later on."

HP

The Elder elves arranged a spontaneous party on the main beach of the Isle of Elves, inviting everyone to participate and celebrate the elves' victory over the wizards. Bandhu took it on himself to introduce Harry to everyone who had not met the boy during his previous stays at the Isle of Elves. His name was already well-known on the island, as the elves' newspaper had been full of the news about the newly found elves' freedom during the whole week, and by now Bandhu and Harry were known as the saviours of the elves.

"Harry, just relax," Anastasia told him in a small voice. "Just enjoy the evening. Later on, I'll pop you back to Hogwarts, and tomorrow morning we're going to see Healer O'Brien. I can also try to help the elf with my healing magic."

"Granny," Harry asked, pensively, "do I also have healing magic or not since I'm adopted but not blood adopted?"

Anastasia smiled at the boy. "How often has Misty given you some of her healing magic by now? One hundred times or more?"

"More," Harry replied, smirking.

"Well, then you surely have developed your own healing magic by now," his grandmother replied, gently. "Misty is also giving you Healing lessons, isn't she?"

"Yes, but she never made me use healing magic on anyone," Harry replied, feeling slightly confused.

Anastasia nodded in understanding. "She probably didn't want you to become too tired or even get pocks by using much magic. But you'll be able to use it if the need arises. And now try to enjoy the party some more, remember they're all here for you, and later on, we'll pop to Hogwarts and see what we can do."

Feeling very much consoled by his grandmother's kind words, Harry spent the rest of the day talking with the elves and playing with the other children, thoroughly enjoying himself.

HP

Back at Hogwarts, Harry immediately popped himself into Severus' lab to inform him of his return. He informed his Head of House about his conversation with his grandmother, before he returned to the elves' quarters in order to try out if his healing magic would work on Tinky.

"Of course it'll work, sweetie," Misty said gently. "It affords a lot of magic though, but if you and granny both help, it'll be a great relief for Tinky. You must be careful though; I don't want you to deplete your magic."

Under his mother's and grandmother's watchful eyes, Harry let a huge amount of healing magic flow into the small elf's body, before the healer elves pulled him away.

"Harry, that was already too much," Misty informed him, giving him a reproachful glare.

"Sorry Mum," Harry apologized in spite of not regretting anything. _'If Tinky hadn't taken these injuries for me, I'd be off much worse,'_ he thought, resolving to repeat the process in the morning.

"Thank you so much. It's much better now," Tinky spoke up after Anastasia had tended to the elf.

"We'll try again in the morning," Harry promised the elf. "I'm so sorry that you were injured with something that was meant for me."

"It's all right, Harry, and thanks for trying to heal me. That helped a lot," Tinky replied, reaching for Harry's cold hand.

Misty unobtrusively cast a sleeping spell at her patient and motioned Anastasia and Harry back into her own room. "Harry, not before the evening tomorrow, and you better don't do much magic tomorrow," she said in a stern voice, of which Harry knew better than to disobey.

"Okay Mum," he replied, obediently and informed his mother about the plan to go and see a Healer, whom Anastasia knew.

"Harry, let me go alone," Anastasia threw in. "There is no need for you to accompany me. You have classes tomorrow, don't you?"

"I don't care," Harry said firmly. "I really need to help Tinky before I'll be able to concentrate on my classes. I feel too bad about the whole thing."

"Harry," Misty replied in a stern voice. "Tinky only did her job, and her job was by chance to protect you."

"But why needed I protection? Am I worth more than her? No, I'm not," Harry replied, upset.

"You were in danger, but do you know why you were in danger?" Misty asked, strictly, and not waiting for a reply, answered herself, "Because you did something really great. You freed the elves after several hundred years of enslavement. Believe me when I tell you that any elf would be willing to protect and even die in order to save you."

"Exactly," Anastasia agreed. "Did you not realise how happy they all were to meet you at the party earlier? As I said before, you're a hero in the elves' world. Just like Bandhu."

Harry groaned, feeling absolutely annoyed at the whole matter. "Can't I just be normal? Just Harry?" he queried, giving his mother and grandmother a devastated look.

Misty gently pulled her son into a hug. "Don't worry, sweetie, everything will calm down eventually, although you can be sure that the elves will never forget about it. All the elven history books are currently being updated, and you can be sure that your name will be mentioned in each of them."

Sighing, Harry bade his mother and grandmother good night and popped back into his room in Slytherin, knowing that Blaise would be worried if he did not return for the night. He quickly told his roommate what happened, before he went straight to bed, feeling extremely tired because of using too much magic earlier.

HP

In the morning, Anastasia popped them right in front of Healer O'Brien's house in the small city of Bally Sideways. Harry rang the bell, and soon they found themselves face to face with a very friendly looking old witch.

Anastasia introduced herself and Harry, and before she could ask about the ingredient they needed, the Healer gave Harry a sharp look and queried, "Harry Potter? Is that you, who recently freed the elves from slavery?"

"Yes Madame," Harry replied in a subdued voice, hoping that this fact wouldn't rob them of the old witch's sympathy.

However, on the contrary, the Healer's face lit up as realisation set in. "Congratulations my boy. You did an awesome job. I followed the whole story in the Quibbler. Here on our small island, we don't have any elves, since no one here supports slavery. What can I do for you dears?"

Anastasia quickly explained the reason for her visit, and Harry sighed in relief, when the Healer nodded in understanding and informed them that they had indeed such an ingredient.

"You're talking about the jellygrapes," she said, smiling. "They grow nowhere else but in the shallow sea around this island. They're small grapes, from which you get a liquid, which possesses this special healing ability. I'll show you where to get them. You can either harvest them yourselves, which I wouldn't recommend if you're not sure how to harvest them, or you can buy them from the fishermen. Come with me." She motioned them to follow them through a small path, which led through the dunes to a small harbour.

Ten minutes later, Harry was the happy owner of a huge bag of jellygrapes, and after receiving an explanation from Healer O'Brien about which amount of liquid from the pressed jellygrapes he had to add to what amount of fluid, Harry and his grandmother readied themselves to pop back to Hogwarts. Before they left, they thanked the Healer profusely.

"You're very welcome dears, and please come and visit me again just to enjoy some time here on our beautiful, quiet island," O'Brien replied gently.

"We will," Harry promised and popped back to Hogwarts right after his grandmother.

HP

Knowing that the Potions classroom was occupied at this time of the day, Harry entered Severus' private lab and brewed a new batch of Murtlap essence, to which he added the requested amount of jellygrape liquid. _'Let's hope that this will work,'_ he thought, as he bottled the potion and hurriedly cleaned up the lab, before he popped himself into the elves quarters to hand the essence to his mother.

To his relief, Misty could apply the essence right away, and she, Anastasia and Harry observed in amazement how the wounds that covered most of Tinky's body closed one after the other. _'Thank Merlin it worked,'_ he thought, happily.

"Well done, Harry, and thanks a lot for doing this for Tinky," Misty spoke up, smiling as she pulled Harry into a bear hug.

HP

To Harry's relief, nothing else extraordinary happened during the following months before his OWLs, so that he could concentrate on his studies. _'For me it's even easier than for anyone else, since I've already taken my Potions NEWTs and thus have one core subject less than the others,'_ he consoled himself, when he spent the Sunday before the test week studying instead of brewing anything interesting together with Severus. _'Thank Merlin next week everything will be over,'_ he thought.

However, just a few days after he had finished his last exam, Professor Dumbledore called Harry into his office.

"My dear boy," he began, offering him a lemon drop, which Harry - as usually - declined, "I'm sorry, but I need you to take one more exam before the end of the school year."

"Another exam, sir?" Harry asked, incredulously. "And the end of the school year is in three days."

_tbc..._

* * *

_Thank you so much for your kind comments for the previous chapter!_

_I am not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes. All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


	30. Unexpected Offer

**30 - Unexpected Offer**

Dumbledore rose from his chair and absentmindedly began to pet Fawkes' head, before he replied, "The Wizengamot has agreed to accept four elf children for every first Hogwarts year in the future. However, at the same time they request us to install a new selective class called 'Elf Science'. I have spoken with the Head of Houses as well as with a few selected elves, and I received the advice to hire you as the new professor for Elf Science." Seeing that Harry opened his mouth, he held up his hand to stop him and continued, "However, apparently, this is not a subject that has to be taught through all Hogwarts years but merely a selective subject for older students; therefore, we have decided to set up another new class only for the sixth and seventh year students, 'Healing', again a subject, which you - according to Madam Pomfrey and Misty - are predestined to teach. However, in order to become the Healing professor, you'd have to take your NEWTs in Healing at least before the beginning of the new school year."

Harry sat there, stunned. _'What?' _he thought in disbelief. _'They want me to become a professor, for two subjects at that, although I've only just finished my fifth year?'_

"Excuse me, sir," he spoke up, questioningly, "what about the NEWTs in the other subjects?"

Dumbledore smiled at the boy. "For Elf Science no further NEWTs are required, since the class is new and going to be taught for the first time, provided that you agree, and for Healing the only required NEWTs are Potions and Healing. For all other subjects the OWLs suffice," he explained gently.

Harry let out a long sigh. "Thank you Professor for offering this to me," he said, slowly. "On the one hand, I really appreciate it and I'd like to accept; however, on the other hand, my absolute favourite subject is Potions, and..." He slowly trailed off, wondering if he was sounding like an ungrateful, egoistic brat.

To his surprise, the Headmaster was still smiling. "Ah my dear boy, my colleagues and I are aware of that, and Professor Snape would appreciate it very much if you - in addition to your other tasks - would remain his assistant. We have to set up a schedule for you, but I believe that with the relatively low amount of classes required in Healing and Elf Science you'll have enough time to teach a few Potions classes or assist with the brewing, provided that you agree to the plan."

"Thank you sir," Harry replied, feeling very relieved at the prospect of remaining Severus' assistant. "In that case I can at least promise to think about your offer. Please just give me a day to ponder the matter."

"Very well," Dumbledore agreed. "Please visit me again tomorrow and inform me about your decision."

"I don't know if I'll manage to pass my Healing NEWT before the new school year though," Harry said, thoughtfully. "I've never taken any exam in that subject."

"Don't worry about that my boy," Dumbledore reassured him. "Madam Pomfrey and Misty assured me that you would pass the exam without any problem."

Like in a trance, Harry excused himself and left the Headmaster's office. The offer to become a professor had been so sudden and unexpected that he felt extremely confused. On the other hand, he felt very happy at the prospect of teaching Elf Science_. 'It would put me into a position, in which I'd be able to do more for the elves and fight for their rights,'_ he thought, wondering if he should pop home and speak with his parents and friends or if he should talk to Severus first. _'I'll speak with Nina,'_ he finally decided and popped home.

HP

"Nina," he whispered to the girl, who was sitting in the elves' library reading an old tome.

"Harry," she replied, happily, immediately putting her book away.

"Shall we go for a walk?" Harry suggested, wanting to speak with his friend in private. Turning invisible, the two friends walked around the lake, unseen and unheard by the students, who were spending the early summer evening on the grounds. He told her about the Headmaster's offer, before he finally asked, "Do you think I should accept?"

"Of course," Nina replied immediately, happily smiling at him. "It's a brilliant chance for you. Remember you can teach a subject that no one has taught before, so that you're totally free what and how to teach it. Plus all the elves will be delighted having you teaching Elf Science at Hogwarts. I'm so happy for you, sweetie."

"Thank you Nina," Harry replied, returning the smile. "Nina," he then said, hesitating, "I'd also like to ask you something completely different." Seeing the girl cast him an expectant look, he continued, "Would you perhaps agree to become my girlfriend?"

_'Oh no, I shouldn't have asked that,'_ he thought the instant the question had left his mouth. However, a broad smile spread over his best friend's face, and she happily nodded.

"I'd love to be your girlfriend, Harry," she replied, gently. "I love you, sweetie."

"Love you too," Harry mumbled and felt himself blush deeply as he pulled his girlfriend into a first kiss.

HP

After spending another two hours sitting on the shore of the lake with Nina, Harry popped into the fifth years' study room in order to speak with his friends before the beginning of curfew. Making himself visible to only Hermione, Millicent and Blaise, who were still his best friends among the students, he told them that he'd like to discuss something with them in private, and the four students unobtrusively packed their belongings and left the room. Unbeknownst to any of his other classmates, Harry slipped out of the door right behind Millicent.

"Sorry for disturbing you," he apologized in front of the study room. "But there's something of which I'd like to hear your opinion, and it has to be tonight. Would you mind coming to my room with me?"

"Of course we don't mind, and you didn't disturb us," Hermione was the first to reply in a gentle voice, and ten minutes later, the four friends entered Harry's room in Severus' quarters.

"What happened, Harry?" Millicent queried, eyeing him in concern.

Harry let out a long sigh, before he let his eyes wander around the room, smiling at his friends. "Dumbledore suggested something to me, and I have to decide until tomorrow if I want it or not," he began and explained, "he wants me to skip my NEWTs in all subjects and instead become a professor for Elf Studies and Healing from the next school year onwards. I'm not sure if I want it though. I'm torn between wanting to accept and preferring to being a student."

"Harry, I understand that this would be a brilliant opportunity for you," Hermione said, thoughtfully. "However, wouldn't it be better to properly finish Hogwarts?"

"I believe that Harry already has properly finished Hogwarts," Blaise spoke up, "considering that he already took his NEWTs in Potions."

"I also have to take the Healing NEWT," Harry added in a small voice.

"Harry, I think you should do it," Millicent voiced her opinion. "Of course it would be sad to not have you in our class and House anymore, but at least you'll still remain at Hogwarts, and I suppose we can still be friends." She cast a huge smile at the boy, which Harry returned, chuckling.

"Of course we're going to remain friends," he promised, before he quietened for an instant, wondering if he should tell his friends about Nina. _'Well, they probably have seen her a few times; on the other hand, she remains invisible most times,'_ he mused. Suddenly realising that his friends were looking at him with expressions of concern and curiosity, he slowly spoke again.

"I don't know if you have met Nina," he asked, looking from one to the next and, seeing his friends shake their heads, explained, "I have two best friends among the elves, Nina and Tony. They've been my friends since we were a year old, and even now we're still best friends. Anyway, earlier I asked Nina to become my girlfriend..." He slowly trailed off, feeling tears of happiness well in his eyes.

"And?" Hermione asked, impatiently. "Did she agree?"

"Yes," Harry replied, smiling. "I'm so happy." With that he couldn't hold back the tears anymore that began to leak from his eyes. "Sorry, I'm just so happy," he repeated. "I'm very confused though about the matter with the teaching positions."

"Harry," Millicent spoke up, pulling him into a light hug. "We're so very glad for you. You really deserve being happy. Please just do one thing and introduce Nina to us before we leave on Saturday, will you?"

"I will," Harry promised and called his friend right away.

"Harry?" Nina enquired, looking at her boyfriend in surprise as she popped into the room.

"Sorry Nina for calling you here," Harry replied, casting her a happy smile. "My friends would like to get to know you. Would you mind making you visible for a moment?"

"Of course not," Nina said, smiling and turned visible to greet his friends.

"Come sit here next to me," Harry invited her, gently laying his arm around her shoulders when she sat next to him on the edge of his bed.

"Aww, you're such a sweet couple," Millicent blurted out. "Congratulations, Harry and Nina."

The friends talked until the beginning of curfew, and Nina offered to pop Hermione back to Gryffindor, while Millicent and Blaise walked back to their common room.

"Harry, as to Professor Dumbledore's offer, you should speak with your parents and with Professor Snape," Hermione said quickly, before she and Nina vanished from the sight.

_'I'll do that,'_ Harry resolved and spent the next few hours discussing the matter with his parents and his magical guardian.

HP

Before breakfast the following morning, Harry entered the Headmaster's office and informed Professor Dumbledore, "Professor, I'd like to accept your offer; however, only under one condition."

"And what might that be my boy?" Dumbledore queried, his eyes twinkling merrily.

_tbc..._

* * *

_Thank you so much for your kind comments for the previous chapter!_

_I am not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes. All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story._


End file.
